France pursues sovereign rocket artillery with Safran-MBDA
TL;DR
France has started exclusive negotiations with Safran and MBDA to supply domestically produced rocket artillery and munitions, sidelining competing bids from Thales/ArianeGroup and Lockheed Martin, in a bid to ensure sovereignty and faster delivery; the consortium aims to deliver the first systems by 2029 and help build a war-ready division by 2027 and an army corps by 2030, with Thundart missiles of about 150 km range and potential longer ranges, and a launcher shown on a Scania truck.
- France picks MBDA-Safran combo to supply multiple rocket launcher Defense News
- France enters ‘exclusive’ negotiations with MBDA, Safran for long-range strike: DefMin Breaking Defense
- France eyes domestic rocket artillery deal as Lockheed pitches HIMARS Euractiv
- France Selects MBDA Safran Thundart Rocket Artillery to Replace LRU With Sovereign 150 km Deep Fires Army Recognition
- France picks Safran, MBDA to build new long-range rocket Reuters
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