Israel's Tavor Strengthens Grip on Global Market
25 February 2008
Tel Aviv - Having elbowed out the U.S. M16 as the weapon of choice for Israeli infantry, local producers of the TAR 21 Tavor are strengthening their grip on the global market with an extended family of high-powered assault rifles for battlefield and urban operations.
No longer an untested novelty of the Israeli defense industry, the Tavor's distinctive long-barreled design, one-armed handling abilities and built-in aiming aids are earning it an increasingly respectable share of export customers. Since its Israeli Army certification in 2002, the Tavor and various spinoffs have been selected to equip infantry, special forces and elite law enforcement teams in nearly a dozen nations, including India, Colombia, Georgia, Portugal and Thailand.
"It wasn't an easy decision for the IDF [Israel Defense Forces]," recalled David Marciano, a colonel in the IDF reserves who managed the Tavor's evaluation, certification and initial procurement contract on behalf of Ground Forces Command.
"The easy route would have been through the American option. With the M4, we had a proven, off-the-shelf, mass-produced commodity in service with the world's sole superpower," said Marciano, former head of the command's infantry branch who later directed all ground forces modernization programs.
According to Marciano, the IDF's embrace of the Tavor came only after "a grueling, three-year evaluation under the most extreme conditions we could think of."
The former IDF acquisition official credited Israel Military Industries (IMI), developers of the Tavor, and its current owners, Israel Weapon Industries (IWI), with working "hand in hand" with IDF users throughout the nearly decade-long development, testing, certification and initial production phases.
In a Feb. 11 interview, Marciano attributed the Tavor's so-called bullpup design - which effectively creates a longer barrel through its placement of the magazine behind the trigger - for the higher-powered performance and greater range demonstrated in IDF testing. Another distinct advantage, he said, was the Tavor's integral optical sight that allows soldiers to aim with open eyes.
"No doubt, the bullpup concept and the man-machine interface provide enormous added value, particularly in close-in urban war-fighting scenarios," he said. "Soldiers can operate this weapon easily with one hand without ever having to take their eyes off the target."
Aspiring to Uzi Status
By the start of the next decade, IWI executives expect the Tavor family and its newest member, the MTAR 21 Micro Tavor, to become almost as ubiquitous as its forebear, the Uzi. Like the venerable submachine gun produced by the millions since its circa-1950 debut, Tavor was a product of IMI until the state-owned firm sold its Magen Small Arms Division to IWI in 2005.
"In the next few years, we aim to become one of the world's most influential providers of small arms," said Mark Shachar, IWI's vice president for marketing and business development.
Shachar, a 25-year executive with IMI before moving to the new, privately held firm, declined to specify IWI's targeted sales or market projections. However, he insisted that in the three years since the acquisition, IWI has more than doubled its global presence.
Beyond intensified marketing and a companywide commitment to training and customer service, Shachar said, IWI aims to increase sales through local partnerships, joint ventures, and mergers and acquisitions. He acknowledged that IWI sales to date have been primarily in the developing world, but with customers who aspire to First World capabilities.
"We're not competing with the Kalashnikov. We view our peers as the best that American, German, Belgian providers can offer," he said.
The IWI executive said the firm "is just now beginning to realize the enormous market potential" for Tavor and its variants. According to the former IDF Golani infantryman, the weapon is designed to be exceedingly precise.
"Ideally, the soldier has to hit his target on the first shot, because he may not have the chance for a second shot," he said.
Similarly, Tavor is designed to provide longer ranges in accordance with the IDF's so-called "see-first, understand-first, act-first" concept of operations.
"Three-quarters of this tool is all barrel, which means higher-powered trajectory and longer range," Shachar said. "We're talking 800 meters or more. Obviously, that exceeds operational ranges of close-in combat, but the enemy can often surprise us from much farther away."
The Tavor family consists of the standard TAR 21; a slightly shorter CTAR 21 for commanders and paratroopers; and the STAR 21 sharpshooter models, all of which fire 5.56mm ammunition. Night vision sights are designed to snap into the flat-topped barrel casing without so-called zeroing preparation.
"This system transitions from day to night operations literally in a heartbeat," Shachar said. "Even while running, the soldier merely has to reach into his pouch and click it in place. The red dot from the integral sight becomes green, and the soldier is fully prepared for nighttime operations."
Twin-Caliber Option
Later this year, IWI will begin accepting production orders for its newest Tavor spin-off for special forces, secret service details and elite law enforcement teams. Designated the MTAR 21 Micro Tavor, the new weapon combines 5.56mm assault and 9mm submachine gun capabilities on a single compact rifle.
According to IWI data, a three-piece conversion kit allows special mission users to transform their compact 5.56mm assault rifles into submachine guns in less than five minutes. Moreover, the weapon can be further tailored for specialized missions through a variety of accessories, including integral silencer and high-intensity flashlight with laser pointer.
"There's no other dual-caliber system on the market. It's an entirely new animal designed specifically for the multimission requirements of the special forces community," Shachar said. "The Micro Tavor offers a small, clever and versatile system. For the price of a rifle and a half, users actually receive two parallel high-performance personal weapons."
He said IWI is finalizing evaluation and field testing of the Micro Tavor and has prepared production facilities to accommodate initial orders