MBDA showcases advanced missile systems at DIMDEX 2008
MBDA, the world leader in guided missiles and missile systems is demonstrating its advanced missile technologies at DIMDEX 2008, the first dedicated Maritime Defence Exhibition and Conference to serve the Middle East and North African (MENA) region.
MBDA is a multi-national group with over 10,000 employees in France, the United Kingdom, Italy and German. The company has three major aeronautical and defence shareholders - BAE Systems (37.5%), EADS (37.5%) and Finmeccanica (25%), and is the first truly integrated company in the sector in Europe. With a turnover of 3 billion euros in 2007, the Group produced over 3,000 missiles during the year, with an order book of 13.1 billion euros and over 70 customers worldwide.
Thanks to the high quality of its products and its optimized organization, MBDA has become a global leader within a period of only five years. Since 2001, MBDA has doubled its turnover and consolidated its order book which will provide the equivalent of five years of workload. The Company has also launched a number of programmes based on the most advanced and innovative technologies.
This success can be attributed not only to the Company's ability to bring together and retain the best engineers but also to the development of a true spirit of cooperation amongst more than 10,000 employees of the group across all four countries.
MBDA: The partner of choice
MBDA has established a relationship that goes back nearly 30 years with Qatar, a relationship that includes three branches of the country’s armed forces. The Qatar Emiri Navy, as well as Exocet is also equipped with the Mistral Sadral air defence system, the Air Force’s Mirage 2000-5 is armed with MBDA’s Mica and Magic 2 air-to-air weapon systems. Mistral and Roland ground based air defence systems are also in service in the country.
MBDA is the only Group able to design and produce missiles and missile systems to satisfy the whole range of current and future operational requirements for the three armed forces (army, navy, air force). In all, the Group offers a range of 45 products in service and another 30 in development.
MBDA has demonstrated its ability to bring together the best skills from the whole of Europe and offer this to customers across the Middle East and Africa and has succeeded in becoming the prime contractor for a series of strategic multi-national programmes. In parallel to these large cooperative programmes, MBDA’s name is inseparable from a large number of systems which have strengthened its reputation as an unrivalled leader: the Exocet naval missile, which is the leading naval superiority weapon worldwide, which is being advanced into an unequalled MM40 Bloc-3 version with successful initial firing tests in 2006. The MICA air-to-air missile, which is in service in a great number of air forces, is now being deployed in a land and naval-based vertical launch version, the VL MICA, which has already received export orders.
The ASTER system, now available in both naval and land versions, providing local and area defence against all type of air threats including plastic one.
Developing cutting-edge technologies while producing new products is an advantage that MBDA offers its customers. MBDA customers benefit from the flexibility that changes can be made to existing products during their life span, in order to meet the constantly changing needs of the defence environments of a country.
It is this combination of technology and flexibility which makes MBDA the partner of choice in the defence sector for many countries around the world.
MBDA will showcase its advanced missile systems at stand number 8000 at DIMDEX 2008.
