MBDA - Definition and Overview

European arms company MBDA, which manufactures missiles, is the result of the 2002 merger of Aerospatiale Matra Missiles (of EADS), Alenia Marconi Systems missile interests, and Matra BAe Dynamics. As of 2003, the company has 10,000 employees and an annual turnover of €2 bn.

MBDA's products include:

• air-to-air missiles:
  • AIM-132 ASRAAM - short range, IR guided
  • Meteor - long range, active radar terminal homing
  • Mica - IR and radar guided versions (also SAM)
• surface-to-air missiles
  • Mistral (also AAM)
  • MBDA Aster - medium and long range SAMs, both land and naval versions
  • Rapier
  • Seawolf
• air-to-surface missiles
  • Apache and derivatives such as SCALP/Storm Shadow
  • AS 30 laser-guided missile
• anti-tank missiles
  • MILAN
  • Trigat
  • Eryx - short range
  • Brimstone ATGM - air-launched
  • HOT
• anti-ship missiles
  • Exocet

Shareholders (as of November 2003)

• EADS (37.5%)
• BAE SYSTEMS (37.5%)
• Finmeccanica (25%)

External links

• MBDA website (http://www.mbda.net/)