The historic test took place yesterday (18 April 2024) and involved first ship-in-class Aquitaine (D650) and a Suffren-class nuclear powered submarine (SSN). The frigate was located off Britany while the SSN was cruising in the Bay of Biscay. The two naval cruise missiles simultaneously hit a target located at the DGA’s missile test center South of Bordeaux.
A missile test conducted in operational conditions
In a release, the French Navy explained that this test was conducted in operational conditions: “In order to strengthen the operational know-how of the French Navy, this ambitious firing was carried out in human and material conditions identical to those encountered in operation. The French Navy thus demonstrates its ability to synchronize strikes against land in depth, from different units, and on a single target.”
Power projection
Designed and produced by MBDA, the Naval Cruise Missile is deployed from FREMM frigates since 2017 and more recently from the new Suffren-class submarines. Known as MdCN in French, the missile offers France a sovereign power projection capacity. French Navy vessels can thus strike targets of major interest from a long distance, and with high precision. According to the French Navy, this action makes it possible to elevate France’s military posture from the first moments of a crisis, thus influencing the will of competitors.
About MBDA’s Naval Cruise Missile
MBDA has developed the NCM (Naval Cruise Missile) to meet the requirement issued by the French Ministry of Defence for a long-range cruise missile capable of being launched from surface and subsurface vessels. This French programme is known as MdCN or Missile de Croisière Naval, intended for the French Navy’s FREMM frigates and the Barrracuda submarine.
NCM provides a unique operational capability, with very long range high-precision strike against politically/military sensitive targets. The missile has been designed for vertical launch from the compact A70 SYLVER vertical launcher which is also capable of housing other MBDA missiles such as the ASTER family of air defence missiles. NCM has also been designed to be launched from the 21 inch torpedo tubes of a submerged submarine.
Technical characteristics/specifications
Weight: 1,400kg
Length: 6.5m
Speed: High subsonic
Range: 1,400 km surface launched / 1,000 km subsurface launched (Source: James O’Halloran, IHS Jane’s Weapons: Strategic 2015-2016, 2015, pp. 140 – 142).
