MBDA
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Defence, aerospace, missiles |
| Predecessor | Aérospatiale Matra Missiles, Matra BAe Dynamics, Alenia Marconi Systems |
| Founded | December 2001 |
| Headquarters | Le Plessis-Robinson , France |
Area served | Worldwide |
| Products | Missiles, integrated missile systems, countermeasure solutions, countermine technologies |
| Owner | EADS (Airbus), BAE Systems, Leonardo (Finmeccanica) |
Number of employees | 13,000 (2023) |
| Parent | Airbus, BAE Systems, Leonardo |
| Website | www |
MBDA is a European multinational corporation focused on the engineering, production, and supply of missiles and associated technologies. Its headquarters are located in Le Plessis-Robinson, near Paris, France. The company was established in December 2001 by merging three prominent European missile manufacturers: the French firm Aérospatiale Matra Missiles, the Anglo-French enterprise Matra BAe Dynamics, and the missile division of the Italian company Alenia Marconi Systems. These entities were originally part of EADS (currently Airbus), BAE Systems, and Finmeccanica (now Leonardo), which continue to serve as MBDA’s parent organizations.
By 2023, MBDA's workforce reached approximately 13,000 employees worldwide, operating through national branches: MBDA France with over 6,000 staff, MBDA UK employing more than 4,000 personnel, and MBDA Italy with 1,852 employees. These branches integrate the resources and operations inherited from their respective countries’ historic companies.
MBDA further expanded its presence by acquiring LFK-Lenkflugkörpersysteme GmbH, the German missile subsidiary of EADS, in 2006, and by launching an office in Madrid in 2010, resulting in the creation of MBDA Germany (1,200 employees) and MBDA Spain (25 employees). Additionally, MBDA operates MBDA Inc. in the United States, which employs around 50 people.
In 2023, MBDA announced revenues amounting to €4.5 billion and supplies over 90 armed forces globally. Its product range encompasses missiles, integrated missile systems, countermeasure solutions, and countermine technologies.
History
The unification of Europe's missile sector commenced in 1996 when half of Matra Hautes Technologies’ missile division merged with BAe Dynamics (a subsidiary of British Aerospace) to form the equal partnership Matra BAe Dynamics (MBD). In 1999, the remaining portion of Matra Hautes Technologies’s missile business (Matra Missiles) combined with Aérospatiale’s missile systems unit to create Aérospatiale Matra Missiles (AMM), following the merger of Aérospatiale and Matra Hautes Technologies. This arrangement placed Aérospatiale-Matra as owner of AMM and holder of Matra’s 50% share in MBD. The year 2000 saw Aérospatiale-Matra merge with Germany’s DASA and Spain’s CASA to form the European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company (EADS, now Airbus), which acquired all Aérospatiale-Matra assets including stakes in joint ventures, establishing Airbus as one of MBDA’s three principal parent firms.
In 1998, GEC-Marconi Radar and Defence Systems (a GEC-Marconi subsidiary) joined forces with a Finmeccanica subsidiary to merge their missile and radar divisions into a 50/50 joint venture called Alenia Marconi Systems (AMS). After British Aerospace merged with GEC-Marconi in 1999 to create BAE Systems, BAE obtained ownership of BAe Dynamics’ half share in MBD as well as GEC-Marconi Radar and Defence Systems’ half stake in AMS, while Finmeccanica maintained its 50% interest in AMS.
December 2001 marked the fusion of AAM, MBD, and AMS missile divisions into what became MBDA. In March 2006, MBDA acquired LFK-Lenkflugkörpersysteme GmbH (LFK), EADS’s German missile subsidiary, renaming it MBDA Deutschland GmbH in 2012. Alongside subsidiaries like TDW and Bayern-Chemie, it constitutes MBDA Germany. Since 2002, MBDA has held a 40% stake in Spain’s Inmize Sistemas S.L., consolidating key Spanish expertise in guided weapons. The establishment of a Spanish office in 2010 enabled local operational management. In the United States, MBDA operates through its wholly owned entity MBDA Inc., which inherited AMS’s research and development facilities based in California. Furthermore, in December 2011, MBDA Inc expanded by acquiring Northrop Grumman’s Viper Strike munitions business located in Huntsville, Alabama.
MBDA Locations
- In France:
- Le Plessis-Robinson (headquarters of the Group)
- Bourges Subdray
- Bourges Aéroport
- Selles-Saint-Denis
- In Germany:
- Schrobenhausen (headquarters of MBDA Deutschland)
- Aschau am Inn
- Freienhausen (testing facility)
- Hermeskeil
- Ulm
- In Italy:
- In the United Kingdom:
- Stevenage, Hertfordshire (head office of MBDA UK)
- Filton, Bristol
- Bolton, Greater Manchester
- MBDA Inc. in the United States:
MBDA Affiliates
- MBDA Deutschland GmbH
- MBDA France and MBDA UK
- MBDA
- Inmize Sistemas (partially owned)
Collaborative Ventures
- Partnerships in Europe:
- Eurosam: joint enterprise between MBDA France, MBDA Italy, and Thales.
- Cooperation between MBDA Deutschland and Rheinmetall Waffe Munition.
- RAM-System GmbH (RAMSYS): a joint venture of MBDA Deutschland and Diehl Defence.
- TAURUS Systems GmbH: collaboration between MBDA Deutschland and Saab.
- Partnerships in the United States:
- COMLOG: joint venture of MBDA Deutschland and Raytheon.
- Collaborations in Asia:
- L&T MBDA Missile Systems Limited: a partnership between MBDA and Larsen & Toubro.
- Joint venture involving MBDA Italy, MBDA UK, and SAMI.
Active Offerings
- Air-to-air missiles
- ASRAAM – short-range missile guided by infrared
- Meteor – long-range missile with active radar terminal guidance
- MICA – available in infrared and radar-guided variants (also adapted for surface-to-air use)
- Mistral ATAM
- Surface-to-air missiles
- Missiles
- The CAMM family (Common Anti-Air Modular Missile)
- The Aster family (Eurosam), developed with Thales Group
- The Mistral missile (also utilized as air-to-air)
- MICA VL variant
- Air defense systems
- Missiles
- Air-to-surface weapons
- ASMP (Air-Sol Moyenne Portée) – French nuclear cruise missile
- Brimstone missile
- Diamond Back kit to extend range of the Small Diameter Bomb (Small Diameter Bomb)
- PGM 500 and PGM 2000 guided missiles (PGM 500, PGM 2000)
- Storm Shadow/SCALP-EG cruise missile (Storm Shadow)
- Viper Strike precision-guided munition
- Land-attack missiles
- MdCN cruise missile
- Anti-ship missiles
- Exocet series (capable of air, surface ship, coastal battery, and submarine launches)
- Marte missile (Sea Killer) launched from air, surface ships, or coastal batteries
- Otomat/Teseo missile system (Otomat/Teseo)
- Anti-tank missiles
- Akeron MP missile
- Enforcer missile (MBDA Enforcer)
- MILAN missile system
Discontinued Products
- Anti-ship missiles
- Sea Eagle missile (Sea Eagle)
- Anti-tank missiles
- Eryx missile (Eryx)
- HOT missile system (HOT)
- PARS 3 LR long-range missile co-developed with Diehl BGT Defence
Discontinued armaments
- Next Generation Multiple Warhead System
- Surface-to-air missiles
- Missiles
- LFK NG (in collaboration with Diehl BGT Defence)
- Air defense platforms
- Missiles
Developments in progress
- Nuclear armaments
- Cruise missile systems
- FC/ASW
- FC / ASW RJ10 – air-launched, supersonic with advanced agility
- FC / ASW TP15 – surface-launched, stealth-oriented, subsonic
- Joint Fire Support Missile (JFS-M)
- Sea Venom
- FC/ASW
- Air-to-surface weaponry
- AKERON LP, previously known as MAST-F, an anti-tank missile designed for the Eurocopter Tiger and Eurodrone platforms
- Surface-to-air missiles
- DefendAir (Very Short Range Air Defense - VSHORAD)
- Fulgur (missile) (VSHORAD)
- Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs)
- Loitering munitions:
- Akeron RCX 50
- Akeron RCH 170
- MBDA OWE (One-Way Effector) – long-range attack drones engineered for large-scale production
- Loitering munitions:
Security breach
In August 2022, MBDA Missile Systems experienced a data compromise involving 80 gigabytes of classified material, including NATO weapons schematics utilized in the Russo-Ukrainian War. The stolen files were sold for 15 Bitcoin, leading to a NATO-led investigation aimed at evaluating and addressing the consequences.