A cruise missile is an unmanned self-propelled guided missile that sustains flight through aerodynamic lift for most of its flight path. Cruise missiles are designed to deliver a large payload over long distances with high precision. Modern cruise missiles are capable of traveling at high subsonic, supersonic, or hypersonic speeds, are self-navigating, and are able to fly on a non-ballistic, extremely low-altitude trajectory.
The Eurofighter Typhoon is a European multinational twin-engine, supersonic, canard delta wing, multirole fighter. The Typhoon was designed originally as an air-superiority fighter and is manufactured by a consortium of Airbus, BAE Systems and Leonardo that conducts the majority of the project through a joint holding company, Eurofighter Jagdflugzeug GmbH. The NATO Eurofighter and Tornado Management Agency, representing the UK, Germany, Italy and Spain, manages the project and is the prime customer.
MBDA is a European multinational corporation specialized in the design, development and manufacturing of missiles and related systems. Headquartered in Le Plessis-Robinson, France, the company was founded in December 2001 via the merger of three of the most prominent European missile systems companies: the French Aérospatiale Matra Missiles, the Anglo-French Matra BAe Dynamics and the missile division of the Anglo-Italian Alenia Marconi Systems. These businesses were subsidiaries of EADS, BAE Systems and Finmeccanica, and all three remain MBDA's parent companies.
The Meteor is a European active radar guided beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile (BVRAAM) developed and manufactured by MBDA. It offers a multi-shot capability, and has the ability to engage highly maneuverable targets such as jet aircraft, and small targets such as UAVs and cruise missiles in a heavy electronic countermeasures (ECM) environment with a range far in excess of 200 kilometres (110 nmi).
The Storm Shadow is a Franco-British low-observable, long-range air-launched cruise missile developed since 1994 by Matra and British Aerospace, and now manufactured by MBDA. "Storm Shadow" is the weapon's British name; in France it is called SCALP-EG. The missile is based on the French-developed Apache anti-runway cruise missile, but differs in that it carries a unitary warhead instead of cluster munitions.
The Missile Transportable Anti-aérien Léger, commonly called Mistral, is a French infrared homing short range air defense system manufactured by MBDA France. Based on the French SATCP, the development of the portable system later to become the Mistral began in 1974. The first version of the system was introduced in 1988 (S1), the second in 1997, and the third in 2018.
The IRIS-T is a family of short range infrared homing air-to-air and short to medium range surface-to-air missiles. It also is called AIM-2000.
The Aster 15 and Aster 30 are a Franco-Italian family of all-weather, vertical launch surface-to-air missiles. The name "Aster" stands for "Aérospatiale Terminale", with French company Aérospatiale having been the project's lead contractor before its missile activities were merged into MBDA. It also takes inspiration from the word "aster", meaning "star" in Ancient Greek. The missiles as well as the related weapon systems are manufactured by Eurosam, a consortium consisting of MBDA France, MBDA Italy and Thales, each holding a 33.3% share.
Brimstone is a ground or air-launched ground attack missile developed by MBDA UK for the UK's Royal Air Force. It was originally intended for "fire-and-forget" use against mass formations of enemy armour, using a millimetre wave (mmW) active radar homing seeker to ensure accuracy even against moving targets. Experience in Afghanistan led to the addition of laser guidance in the dual-mode Brimstone missile, allowing a "spotter" to pick out specific and the highest priority targets, particularly useful to minimise collateral damage when friendly forces or civilians were in the area. The tandem shaped-charge warhead is much more effective against modern tanks than older similar weapons such as the AGM-65G Maverick missile. Three Brimstones are carried on a launcher that occupies a single weapon station, allowing a single aircraft to carry many missiles.
An air-to-surface missile (ASM) or air-to-ground missile (AGM) is a missile designed to be launched from military aircraft at targets on land or sea. There are also unpowered guided glide bombs not considered missiles. The two most common propulsion systems for air-to-surface missiles are rocket motors, usually with shorter range, and slower, longer-range jet engines. Some Soviet-designed air-to-surface missiles are powered by ramjets, giving them both long range and high speed.
MBDA Deutschland GmbH is a German missile systems company. Together with its 100% subsidiaries Bayern-Chemie and TDW, it forms MBDA Germany. The latter is a wholly-owned subsidiary of MBDA, representing its German national division. In addition to the headquarters in Schrobenhausen, MBDA Germany has sites in Ulm and Aschau am Inn.
The AGM-158 Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile is a low detection standoff air-launched cruise missile developed by Lockheed Martin for the United States Armed Forces. It is a large, stealthy long-range weapon with a 1,000-pound (450 kg) armor piercing warhead. It completed testing and entered service with the U.S. Air Force in 2009, and has entered foreign service in Australia, Finland, and Poland as of 2014. An extended range version of the missile, the AGM-158B JASSM-ER, entered service in 2014 as well as an anti-ship derivative, the AGM-158C LRASM in 2018. By September 2016, Lockheed Martin had delivered 2,000 total JASSMs comprising both variants to the USAF. In August 2024 the US was reportedly considering supplying JASSM missiles to Ukraine.
TDW is a European company that develops and manufactures warheads for guided weapons. The company was founded in 1994 and has 130 employees based in Schrobenhausen, Germany. TDW is a 100% subsidiary of MBDA Deutschland GmbH and part of the European guided weapon group MBDA.
An air-launched cruise missile (ALCM) is a cruise missile that is launched from a military aircraft. Current versions are typically standoff weapons which are used to attack predetermined land and naval targets with conventional, nuclear or thermonuclear payloads.
SPEAR is a family of air-launched effectors under development by MBDA UK for the Royal Air Force's Select Precision Effects At Range (SPEAR) Capability 3, or SPEAR 3 programme, from which the system also derives its name. The SPEAR family currently consists of two variants: SPEAR, a 100kg class air-to-surface cruise missile; and SPEAR-EW, an electronic warfare variant for stand-in jamming or for use as a decoy.
MBDA UK is the British division of the pan-European missile systems company MBDA. Formed in 2001, the company has developed, both independently and in cooperation, a range of missile systems, including the CAMM missile family, Storm Shadow cruise missile, ASRAAM air-to-air missile and Meteor beyond-visual-range missile (BVRAAM).
The German Taurus leak was a military communications leak in 2024 that resulted from Russia's interception of a supposedly top-secret webconference of German airforce officials about the possible supply of German Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine and about operational scenarios in the Russian-Ukrainian War.
The German Taurus controversy refers to an ongoing political controversy starting in Summer 2023 surrounding the delivery of Bundeswehr Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine. After the Russian invasion of Ukraine began in 2022, the Ukrainian government asked Germany in 2023 to deliver the German-Swedish air-to-ground cruise missiles. In Spring 2024, the majority of the government and parliament, as well as many surveyed sections of the population, spoke out against the delivery of Taurus missiles to Ukraine.
