Airbus Military and MBDA have successfully demonstrated the release of an instrumented Marte MK2/S anti-ship inert missile installed under the wing of the C295 maritime patrol aircraft.

This flight was the last of a series of trials performed in a joint Airbus Military – MBDA collaboration to validate the aerodynamic integration of Marte on C295, its handling qualities and performance tests.

The installation of weapons under the wings provides new operational capabilities to the C295 MPA allowing the aircraft to perform new missions demanding by the customers. In the anti-submarine warfare (ASW) role, the C295 is already in-service carrying the MK46 torpedo.

This successful trial provides further proof of the operational versatility of the Marte missile and clearly establishes it as the benchmark weapon in the medium weight anti-ship missile sector.

The Marte Mk2/S is already integrated on the AW-101 and the NFH (Naval NH90) helicopters in service with the Italian Navy and integration activities for the Marte ER on the Eurofighter Typhoon are currently underway.

The MBDA Marte MK2/S missile is a fire-and-forget, all-weather, medium-range sea-skimming anti-ship weapon system, equipped with inertial mid-course guidance and radar homing terminal guidance, and capable of destroying small vessels and heavily damaging major vessels. The missile has a weight of 310 Kg and is 3.85 m long.

Airbus Military is responsible for the A400M program, the A330 Multi Role Tanker Transport (MRTT) and further military derivatives based on Airbus civil aircraft. These, together with the smaller 'Light & Medium' C295, CN235 and C212, make Airbus Military the global leader in the market for military transport, tanker and surveillance aircraft capable of performing the most varied types of missions. Altogether, Airbus Military has sold more than 1,000 aircraft to nearly 138 military, civil and governmental customers. More than 800 of these aircraft have been delivered.