The Israeli Merkava IV main battle tanks and Namer armored personnel carriers have been heavily used during Operation Protective Edge in Gaza, last summer. So, the decision to double the orders for spare parts sticks to the necessity to maintain Merkavas and Namers in operational condition.

Namer APC (armoured Personnel Carrier of the 13th Battalion of the Golani Brigade during a drill held in the Golan Heights, northern Israel (Picture source: FlickR IDF official account)

Each Merkava Mk IV tank is made of around a million parts. According to the Jerusalem Post, factories producing parts for the Namer APCs and Merkava MBTs have received new orders worth tens of millions of dollars. The orders have been placed by the Defense Ministry’s Acquisitions Administration and the Merkava Tank Administration.

Last year, senior sources from the army said the IDF will need to equip greater numbers of Merkava MK IV tanks and Namer APCs, and install Rafael Trophy active protection systems on them to deal with future battlefields, particularly against Hezbollah in Lebanon. Not only does the Namer have superior armor to the Vietnam-era M113, but the addition of active defense against shoulder-fired missiles will significantly increase battlefield survivability, resulting in fewer future casualties.

Defense sources told The Jerusalem Post that they expect an increase in the production of the tanks as well as APCs.