French MOD photo A joint team from the French Defence Ministry, Dassault Aviation and MBDA carried out the first guided firing of the ...
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| French MOD photo |
A joint team from the French Defence Ministry, Dassault Aviation and MBDA carried out the first guided firing of the long-range Meteor missile from a Dassault Rafale fighter jet against an aerial target.
The successful firing trial was carried out at French Government Defense procurement agency DGA’s Cazaux Flight Test Center near Bordeaux, S.W. France.
The trial follows the earlier missile separation trials carried out in 2013 and 2014, and represents a major milestone in the integration of Meteor onto the Rafale in line with the development of the aircraft to its improved F3-R standard.
With a throttle able ramjet motor and ‘fire and forget’ firing mode, Meteor is intended for very long BVR (Beyond Visual Range) air defense operations.
Thanks to the performance of the RBE2 AESA (Active Electronically Scanned Array) radar which equips the Rafale (the only European combat aircraft currently equipped operationally with this kind of sensor), it is able to intercept targets at very long range thereby complementing the currently deployed MICA missile used for combat and self defense.
The first Meteor missiles will be delivered as of 2018 to equip the Rafales of the French Air Force and Navy. Development began in 2013, in cooperation between France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Sweden and UK.The main industrial partners of MBDA UK, the industrial prime contractor for the program, are MBDA France, MBDA Italy, SAAB (Sweden), Bayern-Chemie (a fully owned subsidiary of MBDA Deutschland) and Inmize (Spain).
The Meteor Beyond Visual Range Air-to-Air Missile has a range from 100-300 km, reaching a top speed of Mach 4. The guidance system include, inertial guidance, mid-course update via datalink, terminal active radar homing.
Other than Rafale, the missile will equip the Saab Gripen, Eurofighter Typhoon and F-35 (future).
The successful firing trial was carried out at French Government Defense procurement agency DGA’s Cazaux Flight Test Center near Bordeaux, S.W. France.
The trial follows the earlier missile separation trials carried out in 2013 and 2014, and represents a major milestone in the integration of Meteor onto the Rafale in line with the development of the aircraft to its improved F3-R standard.
With a throttle able ramjet motor and ‘fire and forget’ firing mode, Meteor is intended for very long BVR (Beyond Visual Range) air defense operations.
Thanks to the performance of the RBE2 AESA (Active Electronically Scanned Array) radar which equips the Rafale (the only European combat aircraft currently equipped operationally with this kind of sensor), it is able to intercept targets at very long range thereby complementing the currently deployed MICA missile used for combat and self defense.
The first Meteor missiles will be delivered as of 2018 to equip the Rafales of the French Air Force and Navy. Development began in 2013, in cooperation between France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Sweden and UK.The main industrial partners of MBDA UK, the industrial prime contractor for the program, are MBDA France, MBDA Italy, SAAB (Sweden), Bayern-Chemie (a fully owned subsidiary of MBDA Deutschland) and Inmize (Spain).
The Meteor Beyond Visual Range Air-to-Air Missile has a range from 100-300 km, reaching a top speed of Mach 4. The guidance system include, inertial guidance, mid-course update via datalink, terminal active radar homing.
Other than Rafale, the missile will equip the Saab Gripen, Eurofighter Typhoon and F-35 (future).
