• Air Warfare

  Saab makes statement of intent on Tempest

  15th February 2019

  Saab is not ruling out potential involvement in major European future combat jet programmes with the company strongly hinting that it favours the British-led Tempest …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  MBDA’s Brimstone for UK Protector

  29th January 2019

  MBDA has received a contract for the integration of the Brimstone high-precision strike missile onto the Royal Air Force’s (RAF's) Protector RG Mk1 aircraft, the …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  GA-ASI deals signify good business for Britain

  25th January 2019

  As industry continues to ponder how a no-deal Brexit would effect the British workforce, US company General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI) made it clear that it …

• Training

  CAE to provide Protector RG1 training system

  28th January 2019

  As the Royal Air Force prepares for the integration of its latest RPAS, the GA-ASI Protector RG Mk1, an important milestone has been achieved with …

• Naval Warfare

  Mistral missile in new demonstration

  11th January 2019

  MBDA has successfully demonstrated the anti-surface capabilities of the Mistral missile against fast inshore attack craft using a SIMBAD-RC automated naval turret, the company announced …

• Digital Battlespace

  Dassault signs Rafale F4 development contract

  14th January 2019

  French manufacturer Dassault Aviation has signed a Rafale F4 standard development contract with the French Armed Forces, which will offer the platform a host of …

• Naval Warfare

  Sea Venom firing latest in series of UK-France missile developments

  17th December 2018

  As work continues on the joint UK-France programme to develop a next-generation cruise and anti-ship missile system, the smaller but equally crucial Sea Venom has …

• Land Warfare

  Poland nears Wisla final decision

  13th December 2018

  The Polish MoD has confirmed that negotiations for the next phase of the Wisla air and missile defence programme are moving forward as planned and …

• Defence Notes

  EDEX 2018: Weaponised jets proving a challenge for Egypt

  4th December 2018

  The Egyptian Air Force's fast jet fleet is being blighted by a hold-up on its desired weapon for the Dassault Rafale and the service has …

• Land Warfare

  MBDA demos MMP in France

  20th November 2018

  MBDA has showcased the full range of capabilities of its fifth generation Missile Moyenne Portée (MMP) ground combat missile during a live firing demonstration at …

• Defence Helicopter

  Marte ER missile firing in Italy

  21st November 2018

  MBDA’s Marte ER anti-ship missile completed its first firing at an Italian test range on 9 November 2018. During the trial the Marte ER missile …

• Land Warfare

  Russia wins tumultuous Indian air defence tender

  21st November 2018

  Illustrating all that is wrong with many Indian defence procurement, on 19 November the MoD disconcertingly declared KBM’s 9K338 Igla-S as the lowest bidder for …

• Digital Battlespace

  Airbus confident AI will dominate the future of air power

  7th November 2018

  Artificial intelligence (AI) and greater interoperability of airborne and ground based systems will soon dictate the way in which future air combat programmes unfold. That’s …

• Land Warfare

  France clears MMP missile for desert operations

  22nd October 2018

  The French Army has carried out operational evaluation of the MMP land combat missile system in Djibouti, to assess the weapon’s suitability for use in …

• Land Warfare

  Georgia takes on western air defence assets to deter eastern aggression

  17th October 2018

  In early October Georgia showcased its new air defence assets procured from France for the first time. The new weapons includes the new MBDA Mistral …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Loitering munitions

  Deluge (First batch) [France]

  Background Unveiling MBDA unveiled a scale model of the One-Way Effector (OWE), later named the Deluge, at the Paris Air Show 2025. As Breaking Defence reported at the ...

• Loitering munitions

  Deluge (Additional batches) [France]

  Background Unveiling MBDA unveiled a scale model of the One-Way Effector (OWE), later named the Deluge, at the Paris Air Show 2025. As Breaking Defence reported at the ...

• Loitering munitions

  Colibri: Short-range loitering munition (Uncontracted) [France]

  Background Origins French Ministry of Armed Forces spokesperson Hervé Grandjean stated at a press conference in May 2022 that the General Directorate for Armament (DGA) ...

• Medium Range Missile Defence Systems: 20-90km range

  MSAM Replacement [Norway]

  Background Kongsberg's NASAMS has been one of the export successes of recent years in the GBAD sector; however, the Norwegian Government recognises that there will ...

• Loitering munitions

  Larinae: Medium-range loitering munition [France]

  Background Origins French Ministry of Armed Forces spokesperson Hervé Grandjean stated at a press conference in May 2022 that the General Directorate for Armament (DGA) ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  Remote Carrier (RC) [Germany]

  Programme Background FCAS Project As noted by Airbus, the FCAS project is a tri-nation effort which will be centred around a core Next-Generation Weapon System (NGWS), which ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  Remote Carrier (RC) [France]

  Programme Background FCAS Project As noted by Airbus, the FCAS project is a tri-nation effort which will be centred around a core Next-Generation Weapon System ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  Remote Carrier (RC) [Spain]

  Programme Background FCAS Project As noted by Airbus, the FCAS project is a tri-nation effort which will be centred around a core Next-Generation Weapon System ...

• Self-propelled rocket launchers

  Long-Range Ground Strike (FLP-T) [France]

  Background The French Army currently operates the M270 as its only MLRS. France previously procured a total of 55, though this number had reduced to ...

• Directed energy weapons

  Project Dragonfire [UK]

  Background The UK Government's Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) has been working with MBDA, Leonardo and QinetiQ to develop a LASER Directed Energy Weapon (LDEW) called ...

• Loitering munitions

  Loitering munitions [Italy]

  Bids and suppliers MBDA Italia MBDA Italia unveiled two loitering munitions during the Italian Mountain Troops exercise called Volpe Bianca 2025. Due to the sovereignty of ...

• Medium Range Missile Defence Systems: 20-90km range

  Medium-Range Air Defence [Malaysia]

  Background Historically, Malaysia has relied on a combination of SHORAD/V-SHORAD and fixed-wing interceptors.  Given the growth of modern stand-off weapons, Malaysia's Defence White Paper 2020 identified the ...

• Man-portable missile systems

  Mistral SHORAD [Croatia]

  Background Croatia announced the procurement of the Mistral for the Croatian Armed Forces. The procurement followed Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the crash of a Tu-141 ...

• Medium Range Missile Defence Systems: 20-90km range

  Medium Range Air Defence [Portugal]

  Background Portugal's Military Programming Law 2023-2034 includes a requirement for medium-range air defence. In order to facilitate this, Portugal has joined the European Sky Shield Initiative ...

• CUAS - hybrid effector systems

  C-UAS [Portugal]

  Background Portugal's Military Programming Law 2023–2034 includes $8.8724 million (€8.2 million) to acquire counter-unmanned aerial systems (C-UAS) by 2034. It is assumed that this acquisition requires ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Guided munitions

  SmartGlider Light

  The SmartGlider Light is a precision-guided air-to-ground munition developed by MBDA, designed to enhance the strike capabilities of modern combat aircraft. MBDA anticipates that the ...

• Surface-to-air missiles

  VL MICA RF

  The VL MICA missile is derived from the original MICA air-to-air missile developed by MBDA. The VL MICA system's first iteration was developed for naval ...

• Surface-to-air missiles

  VL MICA IR

  The VL MICA missile is derived from the original MICA air-to-air missile developed by MBDA. The VL MICA system's first iteration was developed for naval ...

• Loitering munitions

  Deluge

  Unveiled at the Paris Air Show 2025, Deluge, formally known as the One-Way Effector (OWE), is a loitering munition and low-cost cruise missile from MBDA. The ...

• Loitering munitions

  Akeron RCX 50

  Unveiled in April 2025, the Akeron RCX 50 is a rotary-wing loitering munition from MBDA. The NX70 is designed to support infantry units by conducting battlefield ...

• Surface-to-air missiles

  Aster 30

  The ASTER-30 is a vertically launched surface-to-air missile produced by Eurosam, a joint venture between MBDA France, MBDA Italy, and the Thales Group. Its basic ...

• Surface-to-air missiles

  CAMM

  The Common Anti-air Modular Missile (CAMM) is a short-range, anti-aircraft and anti-missile surface-to-air missile. Developed to be launched from maritime platforms, land-based platforms and aircraft, ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  SHARCS

  The SHARCS is a flying testbed UAV from MBDA Deutschland, which supports the testing of various sub-systems, including avionics, sensor technology, algorithms, networking, and data links. MBDA ...

• Directed energy weapons

  Italian LDEW (Leonardo/MBDA)

  As announced in December 2024, Leonardo and MBDA are collaborating to produce a Fire Unit Laser Directed Energy Weapon (LDEW) for the Italian Navy. The ...

• Air: chaff/flare/decoy systems

  SAPHIR-M

  SAPHIR-M is a chaff and flare dispensing system for the Tiger and NH90, and is also offered for other helicopters. It offers a high decoy ...

• Directed energy weapons

  DragonFire

  DragonFire is a laser weapon system built for the UK MoD and manufactured by a consortium of manufacturers. The primary manufacturer is MBDA, though they ...

• Loitering munitions

  Akeron RCH 170

  Unveiled in April 2025, the Akeron RCH 170 is a fixed-wing loitering munition from MBDA. Similar in design to the Switchblade 300, the system is fitted ...

• Loitering munitions

  Crossbow

  MBDA unveiled Crossbow, a ground-launched One Way Effector Heavy (OWE(H)) at DSEI 2025. Equipped to carry kinetic or non-kinetic payloads up to 300kg, the turbojet-powered OWE(H) ...

• MPVs - 4x4

  MPCV

  The Multi-Purpose Combat Vehicle (MPCV) is a 4x4 armoured vehicle developed by Soframe on the Mercedes-Benz Unimog 5000 truck chassis. Able to accommodate between four ...

• Directed energy weapons

  German LDEW (Rheinmetall/MBDA)

  Rheinmetall and MBDA Germany's collaborative work on laser-directed energy weapon (LDEW) technology has resulted in a German laser weapon system that is close to being ...