MBDA has a long-lasting consolidated cooperation with Qatar, where a great number of MBDA land, sea and air products are currently in service. At DIMDEX 2018 the Company will be showcasing its coastal defence system, which was contracted by the Qatar Emiri Naval  Forces in 2016, and that is going to provide Qatar with the latest generation and technology for interdiction of territorial waters, homeland integrity, protection of vital assets and heavy strike retaliation. This system will replace a coastal defence system operated by Qatar and that was supplied by MBDA almost 20 years ago based on the Exocet Block 1 antiship missile.

The new system will be able to deploy two different ammunitions: the Exocet MM40 Block 3 and the Extended Range version of the Marte anti-ship missile. The Marte ER version differs mainly from the second-generation of Marte anti-ship missile family with the introduction of a turbojet engine as to achieve a tremendous new effective range. The coastal system will provide an all-weather, 24/7 protection of national shores against any surface vessel (such as FPB/FAC, Corvettes, Frigates, Landing vessels). It is being  developed to include a modular, scalable and mobile package of sensors, C2,communications and effectors, tailored to the customers’ specific needs while providing maximum situational awareness, operational effectiveness and net-centric warfare capabilities.

A mock-up of the new MBDA coastal defence system will be also on display on the Qatar Emiri Naval Forces stand.

For the Navy MBDA is also providing its naval based air defence systems for the new ships procured from Fincantieri: multi-role corvettes, Landing Platform Dock and patrol vessels, will be equipped with Exocet MM40 Block 3 anti-ship missiles as well as Aster 30 Block 1, which is also the cornerstone of MBDA medium range ground based air defense systems, and VL MICA air defence missiles. The programme will be comprehensive and it will include training, test stations and maintenance facilities as well as integrated logistical support. The contract was signed within the framework of a Government to Government agreement between the Minister of Defence for Italy, Roberta Pinotti and the Minister of State for Defence Affairs for Qatar, H.E. Dr Khalid Bin Muhammad Al-Attiyah.

Yet MBDA will be also demonstrating its mastery of all layers of air defence with systems such as Mistral and Mistral Simbad RC in the VSHORAD (very short range air defence) domain; VL MICA and EMADS system (Enhanced Modular Air Defence Solution) operating the brand new CAMM ER missile in the SHORAD (short range air defence) domain and the Aster family in the IAMD (integrated Air and Missile Defence) domain.

On its stand, MBDA will showcase its range of air dominance solutions, in the air-to-air, airto-ground and air-to-surface roles. On display also a model of the Rafale with MICA IR/RF, Meteor and SCALP/Storm Shadow and a model of a Eurofighter with Meteor, ASRAAM, Brimstone, Spear, SCALP/Storm Shadow and Marte ER.

MBDA finally will present its fifth generation land combat missile system designed for dismounted infantry as well as for integration on combat vehicles, the MMP, introduced in the French Army in late 2017: a 1/1 scale of an MMP firing post with its natural dimension missile shall be visible on BARZAN booth, together with an MMP firing simulator to fully understand the feature of a system that offers both ‘fire-and-forget’ and ‘man-in-the-loop’ capabilities: the first enables fixed or mobile targets to be hit without intervention by the operator during the missile’s flight. The second allows the operator to change targets midflight, to refine the point of impact, or to divert the missile; it also opens up the possibility of firing at hidden targets beyond the direct line of sight.

The weapon system can be used by day and by night. Its multi-purpose warhead is effective against a wide variety of targets such as vehicles, armour, infrastructures and personnel. Its extreme accuracy gives it the ability to strike at a range of over 4,000 metres while minimising the risk of collateral damage. MMP can be fired by dismounted infantrymen and is also to be fitted on the EBRC Jaguar armoured reconnaissance and combat vehicle, due to be delivered to the French Army in 2020.

Fonte: comunicato MBDA