Three NATO Allies Bolstering Air Defence Stocks

NATO allies France, Italy, and the U.K. have together signed a deal to replenish their stocks of naval air defence missiles via an OCCAR procurement deal.

As per a press statement made by French procurement agency the DGA [Direction Générale de l'Armement] on Friday, the three nations have jointly ordered 218 extra Aster missiles in a deal which also seeks to accelerate similar projectiles already on order.

The order is a mix of Aster 30 Block 1 missiles for all three nations, and Aster 15 missiles specifically for the French Navy. Both are vertically launched surface-to-air missiles initially developed to intercept and destroy a variety of threats including high-performance combat aircraft, UAVs, helicopters, and cruise and even sea-skimming supersonic anti-ship missiles.

The Aster 30 B1 variant has a range of up to 370 miles (600km) and its evolved design is intended to counter threats from short-range ballistic missiles.

The Royal Navy’s six Type 45 destroyers use the Aster 30 missile in their Sea Viper primary air defence systems; France and Italy both use the projectiles in their SAMP/T NG ground defence platforms, as well as in their naval defence systems.

Aster missiles are manufactured by Eurosam, a consortium consisting of MBDA France, MBDA Italy and Thales. The deal was negotiated through the Joint Armament Cooperation Organization (OCCAR: l'Organisation Conjointe de Coopération en matière d'ARmement).

• You can read more details on the French DGA website