MBDA pushes new deep-strike missile in time for Europe to arm up

PARIS — Pan-European missile maker MBDA is pursuing an “aggressive” development schedule for its future cruise and anti-ship missile program, with the assessment phase being finalized and plans to move the long-range strike weapon project known as FC/ASW into development next year.

MBDA is working on what it says are two complementary missiles as part of FC/ASW: a stealthy subsonic missile and another that travels at high supersonic speeds while remaining maneuverable. Italy will join the French-British project in 2025 for the development and manufacturing phases, the missile maker said in a briefing at the Euronaval conference on Wednesday.

The return of high-intensity conflict in Europe shows sovereign deep-strike capability is critical for the continent, while improved air defenses require a range of disruptive technologies to defeat them, according to MBDA – which also makes air-defense systems used by France, Italy, the U.K. and others.

“Given the strategic importance of deep strike, the FC/ASW project has been set a very aggressive schedule by launch partners France and the U.K.,” MBDA said in a statement on Wednesday.

MBDA has put more than 750 people across France and the U.K. on FC/ASW, making it the company’s biggest program ever, even before Italy’s contribution. The company said it has completed a number of tests across all critical elements of the FC/ASW missiles, describing the results as “highly impressive.”

Investment in the weapons program is continuing under the ongoing assessment-phase contract with MBDA, U.K. Minister for Defence Procurement and Industry Maria Eagle said in response to a parliamentary question in September.

The company says FC/ASW is the most technologically advanced missile deep-strike program currently in development. The three countries in the FC/ASW program will operate both missiles, which will be ship and air-launched, according to MBDA.

The firm has manufactured the first prototype of the ultra-low observable missile and performed “extensive” testing of the radio-frequency signature, and has also completed “exhausive” wind-tunnel testing of the ramjet propulsion system for the supersonic missile at the MBDA faciity in Bourges, France. The ramjet missile will operate at high supersonic speeds, but below Mach 5, company officials said.

Other testing completed includes advanced seekers, warheads and aerodynamics for both missiles. Missile design is about 80% fixed, with small modifications still possible, particularly with the arrival of Italy in the program, according to the briefing.

MBDA’s Italian business is strong on missile guidance, already providing that technology for the Aster air-defense missile, and will contribute expertise in that area to the FC/ASW program, the company said.

The attack missiles will have dual missions: ground strike, including suppression and destruction of enemy air defenses, and anti-ship warfare. The supersonic missile’s primary mission will be anti-ship, with an additional ground-attack capability, while the stealth missile’s will be focused on ground attack, with an additional anti-ship mission, particularly against docked vessels.

Within the current missile portfolio, the company has started marketing its Naval Cruise Missile for export, with Italy interested in integration of the weapon on an updated version of the multipurpose FREMM frigate. Italian officials said at Euronaval this week that the country’s new PPA multimission vessels will also get the strike missile .

The missile, comparable to Raytheon’s Tomahawk, has previously only been available for the French navy, where it’s known as the Missile de Croisière Naval or McDN, and equips France’s FREMM frigates and nuclear attack submarines.

The missile maker is also offering a ground-launched version of the naval missile, which was unveiled at the Eurosatory show earlier this year. The Land Cruise Missile would be truck-mounted and could be a short-term option for the European Long Range Strike Approach, whose partners include France, Italy, the U.K., Germany, Poland and Sweden, according to the company.

Countries inside Europe as well as outside have expressed interest in the LCM, according to company officials. The naval and land cruise missiles are both sovereign solutions that are “ITAR-free,” so not subject to restrictions under the U.S. International Traffic in Arms Regulations, according to the company.

MBDA presented a longer-range version of its submarine-launched Exocet anti-ship missile , aimed at providing subs from French shipbuilder Naval Group with a self-defense capability. The missile maker says it’s the only European player to provide a sovereign submarine capability, with no equivalent on the market.

Other novelties presented at Euronaval included an update of the TESEO anti-ship missile used by Italy, with double the effective range and featuring a new seeker combining active electronically scanned array and electro-optic technologies. The TESEO Mk2/E was successfully test fired by the Italian navy on Oct. 10, with the qualification phase expected next year, MBDA said.

Rudy Ruitenberg is a Europe correspondent for Defense News. He started his career at Bloomberg News and has experience reporting on technology, commodity markets and politics.

巴黎——泛欧导弹制造商MBDA正在为其未来的巡航导弹和反舰导弹项目制定“积极”的开发计划，评估阶段即将完成，并计划明年将名为FC/ASW的远程打击武器项目推进开发。

MBDA公司正在研发两款互补型导弹，作为其未来作战/反潜作战（FC/ASW）项目的一部分：一款是隐形亚音速导弹，另一款则是在保持高机动性的同时以超音速高速飞行的导弹。这家导弹制造商周三在欧洲海军会议上的简报会上表示，意大利将于2025年加入这项法英联合项目，参与研发和生产阶段的工作。

欧洲高强度冲突的回归表明，自主纵深打击能力对欧洲大陆至关重要，而改进防空系统需要一系列颠覆性技术才能击败它们，MBDA公司表示——该公司也为法国、意大利、英国和其他国家生产防空系统。

MBDA公司周三在一份声明中表示：“鉴于纵深打击的战略重要性，FC/ASW项目由其启动伙伴法国和英国制定了一个非常激进的时间表。”

MBDA已在法国和英国投入超过750人参与FC/ASW项目，使其成为该公司有史以来规模最大的项目，甚至超过了意大利的参与。该公司表示，已完成FC/ASW导弹所有关键部件的多项测试，并称测试结果“令人印象深刻”。

英国国防采购和工业大臣玛丽亚·伊格尔在9月份回答议会质询时表示，根据与MBDA公司正在进行的评估阶段合同，对武器项目的投资仍在继续。

该公司称，FC/ASW是目前正在研发的技术最先进的导弹纵深打击项目。据MBDA公司称，参与FC/ASW项目的三个国家将同时使用舰载和空射两种导弹。

该公司已制造出首枚超低可探测性导弹原型，并对其射频特征进行了“广泛”测试。此外，该公司还在法国布尔日MBDA工厂完成了超音速导弹冲压发动机推进系统的“全面”风洞试验。公司官员表示，该冲压发动机导弹将以高超音速飞行，但速度低于5马赫。

其他已完成的测试包括两款导弹的先进导引头、弹头和空气动力学性能。据简报称，导弹设计已完成约80%，仍有可能进行小幅修改，尤其是在意大利加入该项目之后。

MBDA表示，其意大利业务在导弹制导方面实力雄厚，已经为Aster防空导弹提供该技术，并将为FC/ASW项目贡献该领域的专业知识。

这些攻击导弹将承担双重任务：对地打击（包括压制和摧毁敌方防空系统）和反舰作战。超音速导弹的主要任务是反舰，并具备一定的对地攻击能力；而隐形导弹则主要用于对地攻击，并具备一定的反舰能力，尤其针对停泊在码头的舰艇。

在目前的导弹产品组合中，该公司已开始向市场推销其海军巡航导弹，意大利有意将该导弹集成到升级版的多用途FREMM护卫舰上。意大利官员本周在欧洲海军展上表示，该国新型PPA多用途舰艇也将配备该型打击导弹。

该导弹与雷神公司的战斧导弹类似，此前仅供法国海军使用，在法国被称为海军巡航导弹（McDN），装备于法国的FREMM护卫舰和核动力攻击潜艇。

这家导弹制造商还提供一款陆基版海军导弹，该导弹于今年早些时候在欧洲防务展上亮相。据该公司称，这款陆基巡航导弹将采用卡车装载方式，并可能成为欧洲远程打击计划的短期备选方案。该计划的合作伙伴包括法国、意大利、英国、德国、波兰和瑞典。

据公司官员称，欧洲内外国家都对LCM导弹表示出了兴趣。该公司表示，舰载和陆基巡航导弹均为自主研发的解决方案，不受美国《国际武器贸易条例》（ITAR）的限制。

MBDA公司展示了其潜射型“飞鱼”反舰导弹的远程版本，旨在为法国海军集团旗下的潜艇提供自卫能力。这家导弹制造商声称，它是欧洲唯一一家能够为潜艇提供自主防御能力的公司，市场上尚无同类产品。

在欧洲海军装备展上，其他新推出的产品还包括意大利使用的TESEO反舰导弹的升级版，其有效射程翻倍，并采用了结合主动电子扫描阵列和光电技术的新型导引头。MBDA公司表示，TESEO Mk2/E导弹已于10月10日由意大利海军成功试射，预计明年将进入鉴定阶段。

鲁迪·鲁伊滕贝格是《防务新闻》的欧洲记者。他的职业生涯始于彭博新闻社，拥有报道科技、大宗商品市场和政治方面的经验。