MBDA March 27 welcomed the signing of the approximately $831 million demonstration and manufacturing contract for the Future Anti-Surface Guided Weapon (Heavy)/Anti-Navire Léger (FASGW(H)/ANL) missile.
FASGW(H)/ANL will equip the Royal Navy’s AW159 Lynx Wildcat helicopters and the French Navy’s maritime helicopters. Weighing around 100 kilograms, this modern primarily anti-ship missile will destroy from safe stand-off ranges vessels ranging from Fast Inshore Attack Craft through medium sized Fast Attack Craft up to large vessels such as Corvettes. The missile also has a surface attack capability against coastal and land targets.
The jointly funded Anglo-French contract was awarded to MBDA by the U.K. Defense Equipment & Support (DE&S) on behalf of the French and U.K. defense ministries and will be managed as part of MBDA’s Team Complex Weapons Portfolio.
The work will complete the joint assessment and missile design work funded by the two nations since 2009.
By working in concert and bringing together their respective strengths, Britain and France will achieve a more cost effective solution to their military needs and help strengthen MBDA’s position in confronting worldwide competition.
Similarly, this will also benefit the capability and export potential of those European helicopter platforms which will integrate the FASGW(H)/ANL system over the coming years.
MBDA CEO Antoine Bouvier said: “This program initiates a new era of cooperation that will allow significant efficiencies on future programs. Instead of combining their efforts program by program, as has been the case up to now, France and the United Kingdom will coordinate their development and acquisition approach to eliminate duplication in the missile sector.”
Benefits in competitiveness and performance, which MBDA has already demonstrated with its principal cooperative programs such as Aster, Storm Shadow/SCALP, and Meteor, will accrue to more and more of French and U.K. products, Bouvier said. “A decisive step has been made toward the reinforcement and sustainability of the missile industry sector in Europe. This development also ensures a long-term commitment to our armed forces customers with regard to their security of supply based on mutual access to sovereign technologies.”
This joint program will deliver an improved capability to replace existing and legacy systems such as the U.K.-developed Sea Skua and the French-developed AS15TT anti-ship missiles.
The program puts into practice the new cooperative principles agreed by France and the United Kingdom during the summit meetings held between the countries’ governments in November 2010, February 2012 and the Brize Norton summit at the end of January. These principles extend to the creation of Centers of Excellence common to the two countries. While optimizing operational efficiency at the industrial level, this approach will also preserve the technology sovereignty of both countries.
Suitable for both blue water and cluttered littoral operations, FASGW(H)/ANL represents a major technical advance. The new system provides very precise effects against a wide range of threats, even in complex environments, thus satisfying a recognized and common future need. A high speed, two-way data-link communicates the images “seen” by the missile’s seeker to the operator, which, in addition to initiating an autonomous engagement, can alternatively remain in control of the missile throughout the full duration of its flight. This optional man-in-the-loop, monitor-and-control facility allows new capabilities such as: in-flight re-targeting; final aim point correction and refinement; or safe abort. Ultimately, the missile will be able to engage targets situated out of direct line of sight when the launch platform is able to benefit from third party target designation techniques, for example, laser illumination.
MBDA is held by Airbus Group
with 37.5 percent, BAE Systems with 37.5 percent and Finmeccanicawith 25 percent.