The Royal Navy (RN) has declared full operational capability (FOC) for the Thales UK-produced Martlet missile with its Leonardo Helicopters Wildcat rotorcraft.
Announced on 18 October, the milestone follows recent test firings made over the Aberporth test range off the West Wales coast, and during a NATO exercise in the Mediterranean Sea.
Staged between 29 September and 2 October, the French-led exercise Wildfire involved Wildcat flights conducted from Hyeres, near Toulon.
Firings of the supersonic weapon – also known as the Lightweight Multirole Missile (LMM) – were made against two SCR Alba fixed-wing target drones; a design with a 2.2m (7ft 2in) wingspan. Two small uncrewed surface vessels, which were “moving at speed across the Mediterranean”, were also engaged, including one during a night-time shot.
All targets were “quickly and successfully eliminated”, says the RN, which adds that the work “highlighted the effectiveness of the Wildcat-Martlet pairing against modern uncrewed threats”.
Carried in a five-round launcher beneath the Wildcat’s weapon wing, the Martlet missile reaches a maximum speed of Mach 1.5 and has a reported range of 3-5nm (6-9km).
“Despite its compact size and cost-effectiveness, it is highly manoeuvrable and remarkably lethal, as proven during these demanding trials,” the RN says.
“Exercise Wildfire concluded with a demonstration for NATO allies, as navies across the alliance wrestle with the challenge of drones above, on and beneath the waves,” the service adds.
The Martlet’s FOC declaration came just over two weeks after the RN announced that MBDA’s Sea Venom anti-ship missile had reached initial operational capability with the Wildcat.
Meanwhile, the UK Ministry of Defence on 10 October announced that it has supplied hundreds of gifted LMMs to Ukraine, five months ahead of schedule.
“The missiles, manufactured in Belfast [Northern Ireland], are used to defend Ukraine’s airspace,” it states.
