ARMAMENTS

The EXOCET MM40 BLOCK 2, a mobile coastal defence system, has been serving since 1994 in the arsenal of the National Guard.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD), as stated in a previous article, following the publications of the French La Tribune, confirmed in February 2020, the signing of contracts related to the upgrade of weapon systems. The estimated cost amounts to 240 million euros, but the MoD did not disclose which systems will be purchased or upgraded.

Also read: Mistral-3 | The remarkable SHORAD system the National Guard will acquire – VIDEO and Photos

Based on what has already been published up to now, we can assume that the purchase will also include the acquisition of the latest version of the EXOCET MM40 coastal defence system, the BLOCK 3.

In this article, we will briefly present the capabilities of this system, which are very enhanced, compared to the existing system (Blk 2) available to the National Guard’s Navy.

The EXOCET MM40 BLOCK 3 mobile coastal defence system is manufactured by MBDA and provides anti-access/area denial (A2/AD) capabilities against surface targets at distances of up to 200 kilometres compared to 70 km of the previous version (Blk 2).

The system is based on the latest version of the EXOCET MM40 BLOCK 3 missile in operational service with several navies around the World, including Greece.

Main Features 

• Weight: 780 kg
• Length: <6 m
• Diameter: 350 mm
• Speed: High subsonic
• Can be operated under all weather conditions
• Mission planning with automatic computation of the required engagement plans to support firing decisions
• Outstanding penetration capability against enemy air defences
• Optimised for high G manoeuvres; reduced IR signature and low RCS Propulsion
• Improved turbojet engine for greater operational flexibility
• 3D way-points navigation based on a hybrid INS/GPS package and a radar altimeter
• Advanced terminal guidance based on a J-band active RF seeker with adaptive search patterns allowing autonomous acquisition of moving targets in complex scenarios even in long-range
• Self-adapted sea-skimming 
• Optimised HE blast and pre-fragmented effects with impact fuze or proximity function
• Ability for terminal attacks via different azimuths at a very low sea-skimming altitude with simultaneous time on target for multiple missile engagements

The system includes its own sensors such as radar, electro-optical sensors (EOS), identification system (AIS) for autonomous operations and/or connection to a wider C3I (Control, Communications and Information) system.

The basic system architecture at the battery level includes:

• A Mobile Sensors Unit
• Α Mobile Control Unit
• 2 Mobile Firing Units with 4 missiles each

Exocet Blc © MBDA

An important advantage for existing EXOCET MM40 BLOCK 3 operators is the fact that existing logistic assets can be used for the EXOCET MM40 BLOCK 3 mobile coastal defence system.

According to the MBDA, the launch system of BLOCK 3 is interoperable with all MM40 versions, thus enabling a smooth transition from previous versions to BLOCK 3.

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