MBDA Presents First Missile for the French HIMARS-Style System

MBDA has for the first time demonstrated the Thundart surface-to-surface missile with a range of 150 kilometers, which is participating in the French competition to develop an analogue of the American HIMARS.

The War Zone (TWZ) reported on this.

The company published the first photo of the 227 mm guided Thundart missile – in this case, a test sample – on December 4, St. Barbara’s Day, who is considered the patron saint of artillerymen in both France and Ukraine.

Thundart is the result of the Long-Range Land Strike (FLP-T) program, launched in 2023 by the French Ministry of Defense’s procurement agency (DGA). Its goal is to create a tactical strike system with a range of up to 150 kilometers.

Long-Range Land Strike Program

The program involves two industrial teams: MBDA and Safran, responsible for Thundart, and the Thales–ArianeGroup consortium with the Foudre project.

Work on Thundart started at the end of 2023, and the missile mock-up was first presented at the Eurosatory defense exhibition in June 2024. It is stated that the guidance system is very similar in characteristics to the one Safran manufactures for the AASM Hammer guided aerial bombs.

All versions of the Hammer are equipped with a combined guidance unit based on GPS and an inertial navigation system (INS), designed to strike stationary targets. Versions with infrared and laser seekers are also available. However, no seeker head is visible in the published photos of the missile, which may indicate that, at least in the initial stage, the new missile, like the American GMLRS, will rely on a combination of GPS/INS.

Meanwhile, the fire-control system for Thundart will be developed using solutions from the French CAESAR self-propelled howitzer.

The FLP-T program requires each team to propose a technical solution suitable for test firings by mid-2026. After that, the French government will decide which option to develop further, or whether to choose an already available foreign system.

The ambitious schedule is explained by the urgent need to replace the French Army’s existing Lance-Roquettes Unitaire (LRU) rocket systems, which are a modified version of the M270 MLRS. The M270 is capable of firing 227 mm rockets and ATACMS ballistic missiles, but the French version uses only GMLRS rockets.

The French Army currently has 9 LRU systems, scheduled for retirement in 2027.

France’s defense spending plan for 2024–2030 allocates €600 million to the FLP-T program. At least 13 systems are to be procured by 2030, with expansion to 26 systems by 2035.

The purchase of 26 systems will enable the creation of a second rocket artillery regiment. This will provide support for the new army corps that the country is forming for NATO.