War Is Booming Business: Israel's Defense Giants Sitting on $80 Billion in Orders

Israel's defense industry is sitting on a staggering $80 billion in unfilled orders, a backlog that surpasses the country's entire annual healthcare budget and reflects the grim arithmetic of a nation at war. With employees set to share in the windfall through record bonuses, the sector's unprecedented boom shows a stark reality: for Israel's military-industrial complex, the conflict with Iran has been transformative.

Israel Aerospace Industries leads the pack with a $29 billion order backlog at the end of 2025, up from $25 billion the prior year. The state-owned giant's employees are expected to receive bonuses exceeding 200 million shekels following a year of record-breaking profits, a reward that reflects both the company's surging revenues and the extraordinary wartime demand for its missile defense systems, drones, and radar platforms, as reported by Calcalist.

Elbit Systems, Israel's largest publicly traded defense firm, reported a record backlog of $28.1 billion, having added $5.5 billion in new orders over the course of 2025 alone. The fourth quarter saw $2.9 billion in fresh contracts. The company hired 2,000 new employees during the year, bringing its workforce to 24,000, with 14,000 based in Israel.

Elbit's Israeli revenue surged 28.6 percent to over $2.5 billion, accounting for 32.2 percent of total sales. European business climbed 17.5 percent to $2.1 billion, while North American revenues rose 9.1 percent. CEO Bezalel Machlis noted that operations against Iran consume substantial quantities of the company's weapons systems and drone platforms, driving both domestic consumption and international customer confidence.

Rafael, the state-owned weapons developer behind the Iron Dome and David's Sling systems, was last estimated to hold approximately $22 billion in orders, split roughly evenly between domestic and international clients. Updated figures are expected imminently. Even smaller firms are riding the wave - Next Vision saw its backlog jump from $218 million to $288 million.

The delivery pressure is intense. Roughly 54 percent of Elbit's massive backlog is designated for fulfillment within just two years, creating extraordinary strain on manufacturing capacity and supply chains. Industry analysts say infrastructure constraints limit annual growth to 15-20 percent, meaning the defense giants must rapidly expand facilities, hire workers, and optimize supply chains to meet their commitments.

The surge in orders reflects a broader reality for Israel's defense sector: the multi-front conflict and the specter of Iranian aggression have made Israeli weapons systems among the most sought-after in the world. For the employees collecting their bonuses, the paychecks are a tangible reminder that in wartime Israel, the defense industry has never had it so good.