Germany should approve a production contract for the Meteor beyond visual-range air-to-air missile (BVRAAM) before year-end, with prime contractor MBDA expecting the topic to be discussed by the nation's budget committees "in November or December".
Speaking at the ILA Berlin Airshow on 13 September, Russ Martin, head of military advisors for MBDA UK, confirmed that Germany is tipped to sign an order "towards the end of this year".
Led by the UK Ministry of Defence and its industry partner, the Meteor programme is a multinational venture also involving France, Italy, Spain and Sweden. All of the partner nations have already signed for production examples of the long-range weapon, with the exception of Germany.
 |
|---|
MBDA |
Berlin will acquire the Meteor to equip its Eurofighter combat aircraft, with the missile's scramjet engine having been developed by MBDA Germany subsidiary Bayern-Chemie. It will also arm examples of the same aircraft operated by Italy, Spain and the UK, plus Dassault Rafales for France and Saab Gripens for Sweden.
MBDA has delivered briefings about the BVRAAM weapon's capabilities to numerous nations, including those involved in the Lockheed Martin F-35 programme. Martin says it has also attracted interest from operators of other aircraft types, but declines to name them.
Source: Flight International
