AIN Online:
Around 1,500 MBDA Aster medium-range air defense missiles have now been delivered to nine nations, equipping 55 air defence systems. Now the company (Chalet 173) is working with its partner in the Eurosam consortium, Thales, to develop a new version that gives expanded capabilities, with an accent on ballistic missile defense. Development is scheduled to be complete by 2023, with production beginning the year after.
Known as Aster 30 Block 1NT, the new version employs the same body and booster as the current Aster 30, but features a new Ka-band active seeker in place of a Ku-band unit. The seeker produces a narrower beam giving longer range and much better angular resolution. In turn this allows the missile to engage a target earlier in its trajectory, an important consideration in the case of multi-warhead missiles, and also to accomplish more refined course corrections during the fly-out. The missile uses the “Pif-Paf” control concept that combines aerodynamic and thrust controls…
