The Italo-French Eurosam consortium, comprising MBDA France, MBDA Italia and Thales, has been contracted by the Organisation for Joint Armament Cooperation (OCCAR) to produce SAMP/T NG new-generation ground-based air defence systems for the Italian Air Force.
The award is an amendment to the Famille des systèmes Surface-Air Futurs/Famiglia dei sistemi Superficie-Aria Futuri – Principal Anti Air Missile Systems (FSAF-PAAMS) sustainment and enhancement contract under which SAMP/T NG production was ordered in January 2023 for the Italian Army and French Air and Space Force.
The amendment was signed on 18 July 2023 by OCCAR-EA Director Joachim Sucker and Eurosam Managing Director Eva Bruxmeier in the presence of representatives from Italy’s General Secretariat of Defence/National Armaments Directorate (SEGREDIFESA/DNA), France’s Directorate General of Armaments (DGA) and the Italian Air Force.
The number of systems to be produced for the Italian Air Force was not disclosed, and neither was the value of the contract amendment, but MBDA noted in a press release that the air defence systems to provided would include Kronos Grand Mobile High Power radars provided by Leonardo, which feature active electronically scanned-array (AESA) technology and are used mainly for surveillance and air defence in land and coastal environments.
Development of the SAMP/T NG system, launched in 2021 as a co-operative programme between France and Italy, is an enhancement of the Sol Air Moyenne Portée Terrestre (SAMP/T) system in service since 2010 and currently deployed in Europe and in the Middle East.
The SAMP/T NG system comprises: the Aster 30 Block 1 NT (new technology) interceptor from MBDA, which includes a new seeker and a new computer compared to the standard Aster 30 missile; an upgraded launcher; the previously mentioned Kronos Grand Mobile High Power radar for Italian systems and the Thales Ground Fire 300 radar for French systems; and a common command-and-control (C2) module based on upgraded open C2 software architecture and enhanced connectivity.
The SAMP/T NG system provides 360-degree aerial surveillance coverage out to more than 350 km and a interception range of more than 150 km. According to MBDA, the system can operate in a dense civilian air environment, in co-operation with friendly military aircraft and fully integrated into air defence networks; can counter emerging and future threats as diverse as hypersonic missiles, manoeuvring ballistic missiles (including with multiple re-entry vehicles), high-velocity cruise missiles, unmanned aerial vehicles and highly manoeuvring aircraft, in a saturation attack scenario and in a challenging cyber environment; and can deploy quickly with a limited number of personnel.
Peter Felstead