Companies in South Baden also produce armaments. However, the importance of the industry is less here than in the Lake Constance region.
It is Franz Josef Strau’s most visible legacy in Freiburg. The long-time CSU leader, former Bavarian Prime Minister and ex-Federal Defense Minister, who died in 1988, is responsible for the fact that navigation technology has been manufactured in Breisgau since 1961. When the federal government ordered Lockheed Starfighter fighter aircraft from the USA, Strau wanted Germany to also benefit from the production. Freiburg was chosen, among other things, because there was a lot of knowledge about precision engineering in the Black Forest. Today Litef, a subsidiary of the US company Northrop-Grumman, develops navigation devices and sensors in Freiburg that are used by both the military and civilians. More than 500 people work there.
Around 200 people work for Rheinmetall in Neuchâtel. Among other things, pyrotechnic products such as smoke ammunition for the military are manufactured there. Rheinmetall is one of the major players in the German defense industry, and demand for smoke ammunition that obscures targets is high.
Recovery technology for military applications comes from the medium-sized company Rotzler from Steinen im Wiesental. With the help of its winches and systems, broken tanks can be recovered, for example. The company employs around 270 people.
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