The Israeli army is considered one of the best in the world. No wonder, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) must defend a country that is surrounded by enemies in the truest sense of the word. At the same time, Israel has a creative defense industry. In the gear sector, AGILITE is one of the most outstanding companies. We talked with Eric, who is the international salesman for Agilite and was a member of the maritime SOF unit Shayatet 13, about the “Israeli way of gear”.
SPARTANAT: Eric, where does Agilite come from and when did you start it?
AGILITE: Agilite is an Israeli company that uses experience from IDF units to make clever and more creative solutions to make tactical gear more ergonomic. It was founded in 2006 in Tel Aviv, Israel and is a supplier to both the Israel Defense Forces and Forces worldwide.
SPARTANAT: IDF is an army with a lot of experiences. Is there a specific Israeli way of gear?
AGILITE: Yes, The IDF was founded under fire and often had to get by with whatever bad gear they could get hold of and just make it work. Right from the start, adapting the gear to make it work better was a part of the military culture. Soldiers had to get creative to make their equipment work well enough because being too heavy or not being able to move fast enough could cost you your life.
SF units and even regular infantry battalions all set up their own in-house gear studios to adapt or design their equipment from scratch to make it work well. They say “Necessity is the mother of invention” and when there’s a direct link between soldiers coming back from nightly missions and gear designers within their units gear can be refined and refined until it’s optimal for combat. This lead to a very different gear culture to other countries.
Agilite was founded to take this clever, creative, experience-based approach to gear design and combine it with professional manufacturing and to take it worldwide to other allied forces who can benefit from this mindset and gear that works with the body, not against it.
It’s gear ideas and experience going from the battlefield to the manufacturer, not the other way around like in many places.
As time goes on, weapons, enemy tactics and types of threats change but our soldiers’ bodies remain constant so gear has to adapt to keep operators light on their feet and agile.
SPARTANAT: What’s your favorite Agilite product?
AGILITE: My favorite Agilite product is the Axis knee pad, a product that fixed the IDF’s problem of knee pads that fall down. Axis are now the standard issue knee pad for the entire Israeli military and they are outstanding. Every operator knows what it’s like to have to pull your knee pads up from your ankles non-stop and with Axis you don’t have to do that. You put them on and forget about them. They are also great because they are very well priced to be relevant to all soldiers not just SF which is rare.
Personally I also love them because they grip wet surfaces, do not slip on boats and also don’t absorb water. which is important in naval operations. Some people are bothered by their physical appearance but anyone who tries them is instantly hooked.
SPARTANAT: Where is Agilite also in use beside Israel?
AGILITE: Agilite equipment is in use in over thirty countries and in some of the world’s most elite special forces units. Many top tier units operate in Middle Eastern combat terrain and climates very similar to ours and so our gear is very well received. We also do a lot of custom gear that is unit-specific but obviously not all of this is for public knowledge.
Eric M is head of International sales for Agilite. He spent 5 years as an operator in Shayetet 13, Israel’s Tier 1 Naval Special Warfare Unit. Contact: eric@agilitegear.com
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