Manufacturer catalog

Oerlikon Contraves

Oerlikon Contraves is the Swiss air-defense builder lineage behind the Oerlikon twin-gun and Skyguard families, later absorbed into Rheinmetall Air Defence AG. In this catalog it anchors legacy anti-aircraft cannons, fire-control systems, and the Oerlikon-branded short-range air-defense lines that Rheinmetall still markets.

5 weapons

Oerlikon Contraves represents the Swiss anti-aircraft and fire-control lineage that emerged from Oerlikon's early cannon work and later became the air-defense business now known as Rheinmetall Air Defence AG. The catalog keeps that name because many weapon records still resolve through the Oerlikon brand, even when the current corporate owner uses Rheinmetall branding.

That matters here because the builder facet connects older GDF twin-gun entries, Skyguard-related systems, and newer Oerlikon-branded short-range air-defense products to one sourced profile instead of scattering them across multiple names.

air defence systemsmedium-calibre automatic cannonsfire-control systemsnaval air defenceairburst ammunition

Notable Systems

GDF twin 35 mm gun family

Rheinmetall continues the Oerlikon twin-gun lineage and describes the current family as part of its automatic cannon-based air-defence portfolio.

Sources: Rheinmetall Medium-Calibre Cannons, Oerlikon History
Skyguard air defense system, Ground-based short-range air defense system, Air Defense

Skyguard 3

Ground-based short-range air defense system

Rheinmetall presents Oerlikon Skyguard 3 as the third generation of the Skyguard air-defence product line and a control unit for legacy and current effectors.

Sources: Rheinmetall Air Defence Systems

Skynex

Rheinmetall describes Oerlikon Skynex as its latest short-range air-defence solution and a modular continuation of the Oerlikon brand.

Sources: Rheinmetall Skynex

Manufacturer History

  1. Oerlikon's Swiss predecessor is founded

    Oerlikon's history page says Swiss Machine Tool Factory Oerlikon was founded in Zurich-Oerlikon in 1906 as the direct predecessor of Oerlikon-Bührle AG.

    Sources: Oerlikon History

  2. Early anti-aircraft cannon work begins

    Oerlikon's history page records the acquisition of the Becker cannon patent through the takeover of Semag, a key early step in the company's anti-aircraft gun lineage.

    Sources: Oerlikon History

  3. Rheinmetall acquires Oerlikon Contraves

    Rheinmetall says it acquired a majority stake in Oerlikon Contraves AG of Zurich in 1999, bringing the Swiss air-defence business into the group.

    Sources: Rheinmetall 1991-1999 History

  4. The name becomes Rheinmetall Air Defence AG

    Rheinmetall says the company changed its name from Oerlikon Contraves AG to Rheinmetall Air Defence AG on 1 January 2009 while continuing the Oerlikon brand.

    Sources: Rheinmetall Air Defence About Us

Successors
Rheinmetall Air Defence AG
Website links
About Rheinmetall Air DefenceAir Defence SystemsMedium-Calibre CannonsContact Zurich

This profile follows the legacy Swiss air-defence business through its current Rheinmetall successor. Official sources use the Rheinmetall Air Defence name after 2009, but the Oerlikon brand remains visible on cannon, fire-control, and short-range air-defence products.

Manufacturer Sources

  • Rheinmetall Air Defence About UsPublisher: Rheinmetall | Note: Supports the current successor company, the 2009 rename from Oerlikon Contraves AG to Rheinmetall Air Defence AG, and the fact that the Oerlikon brand is continued. | Accessed: 2026-06-21
  • Rheinmetall Air Defence ContactPublisher: Rheinmetall | Note: Supports the Zurich address used for the current Rheinmetall Air Defence office connected to the Oerlikon line. | Accessed: 2026-06-21
  • Rheinmetall 1991-1999 HistoryPublisher: Rheinmetall | Note: Supports Rheinmetall's 1999 acquisition of a majority stake in Oerlikon Contraves AG of Zurich. | Accessed: 2026-06-21
  • Oerlikon HistoryPublisher: Oerlikon | Note: Supports the 1906 Zurich predecessor and the early cannon-line lineage that fed Oerlikon's defense business. | Accessed: 2026-06-21
  • Rheinmetall Medium-Calibre CannonsPublisher: Rheinmetall | Note: Supports the Oerlikon legacy medium-calibre cannon portfolio and the current product focus on 20-35 mm automatic cannons. | Accessed: 2026-06-21
  • Rheinmetall Air Defence SystemsPublisher: Rheinmetall | Note: Supports the current air-defence product portfolio and the Zurich location context for Rheinmetall Air Defence AG. | Accessed: 2026-06-21
  • Rheinmetall Skyguard 3Publisher: Rheinmetall | Note: Supports the Skyguard 3 product line as the third-generation Oerlikon Skyguard air-defence system. | Accessed: 2026-06-21
  • Rheinmetall SkynexPublisher: Rheinmetall | Note: Supports the Oerlikon Skynex family as Rheinmetall's current modular short-range air-defence system. | Accessed: 2026-06-21
  • Oerlikon GDF Skyguard ImagePublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports the builder image provenance; the file page identifies a 1979 Comet Photo AG / ETH-Bibliothek Zürich image licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 and depicting an Oerlikon GDF gun with Skyguard fire control. | Accessed: 2026-06-21

Produced weapons

Category

Air Defense

Systems that contest aircraft, missiles, helicopters, and drones.

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Skyguard air defense system, Ground-based short-range air defense system, Air Defense2014 Russia-Ukraine WarSkyguard air defense systemGround-based short-range air defense systemBuilt in: Switzerland / GermanySkyguard is a Swiss ground-based air defense system line built by Oerlikon Contraves, now Rheinmetall Air Defence, and the Skyguard/Aspide configuration links the fire-control system to Aspide-family missiles. Rheinmetall describes Skyguard 3 as an inner-tier, vital-asset protection system able to connect gun and missile effectors, while Ukraine-war reporting has identified a rare Skyguard/Aspide control station in Ukrainian service under Russian loitering-munition attack.
Iranian anti-aircraft artillery, Gun-based short-range air defense artillery, Air Defense2020 United States-Iran Conflict, 1980 Iran-Iraq WarIranian anti-aircraft artilleryGun-based short-range air defense artilleryBuilt in: Iran, Soviet Union/Russia, SwitzerlandIranian anti-aircraft artillery is an aggregate category for gun-based air-defense systems in Iranian service, including ZU-23-2 and Mesbah 23 mm weapons, Oerlikon-derived 35 mm Samavat guns, and older heavy-caliber systems. The record is most directly documented in the 1988 Tanker War phase of the 1980 Iran-Iraq War, where a Sassan platform 23 mm gun mount engaged U.S. forces, and in the 2020 United States-Iran Conflict, where ZU-23-2-type guns appeared as low-altitude point-defense threats and strike targets.
GDF-001 / GDF-002 anti-aircraft gun, Towed twin 35 mm anti-aircraft gun, Air Defense2014 Yemen Civil WarGDF-001 / GDF-002 anti-aircraft gunTowed twin 35 mm anti-aircraft gunBuilt in: SwitzerlandThe GDF-001 and GDF-002 are early Oerlikon GDF twin 35 mm towed anti-aircraft guns. Weaponsystems says the family entered service in 1963, and from the GDF-002 onward it added a Ferranti GSR sight and digital data-bus linkage for Skyguard fire control. In Yemen, open-source documentation places GDF-001/GDF-002 guns in the pre-war Yemeni Army inventory and available to Yemeni battlefield parties after the Houthi takeover, but does not support a precise engagement or shootdown claim.

Category

Naval Systems

Warships, submarines, unmanned surface vessels, naval craft, and maritime combat systems.

1/1
20mm Oerlikon GAM-B01, 20 mm naval self-defense gun mount, Naval Systems1990 Gulf War20mm Oerlikon GAM-B0120 mm naval self-defense gun mountBuilt in: United Kingdom / SwitzerlandThe 20mm Oerlikon GAM-B01 is a manually aimed British shipboard self-defense mount built around the Swiss Oerlikon KAA 20x128 mm autocannon. BMARC developed the mount after the Falklands War renewed Royal Navy interest in simple close-range guns for warning shots, small-craft defense, and last-ditch air-defense tasks; Gulf War-era Royal Navy reporting documents a 20mm Gambo aboard HMS Battleaxe on Gulf duty, with other references covering Royal Navy platform fits and training use.