The French Directorate General for Armaments has signed a contract with Airbus Defense and Space as prime contractor and Thales as partner, a contract for a risk mitigation study for the future maritime patrol aircraft program. The 24-month contract follows on from the architecture and feasibility study launched at the end of 2022.
“The A321 MPA (Maritime Patrol Aircraft) has all the prerequisites to become a flying frigate capable of meeting the diverse missions of the French maritime patrol,” said Jean-Brice Dumont, Executive Vice President, Head of Air Power at Airbus Defense and Space. “Airbus offers a sovereign solution that provides the autonomy, availability and reliability required to contribute to the oceanic component of nuclear deterrence.”
The new definition and risk study contract is intended to prepare the launch of the development and implementation of the maritime patrol aircraft program at the end of 2026. The study will deepen the initial results of the architecture study in order to refine the economic and industrial conditions for the implementation of the program, make the technical choices for the systems to be integrated into the aircraft and carry out the first wind tunnel tests.
The A321 MPA is the militarized version of the Airbus A321 XLR, which covers all the operational requirements of the Navy, particularly in anti-submarine warfare, anti-ship warfare and intelligence gathering. The aim is to have a new aircraft to replace the Atlantique 2 fleet, which the French Navy operates from the Lann-Bihoué naval air base, between 2030 and 2040.
To this end, the aircraft will be equipped with a range of sensors specially developed for maritime patrol aircraft, to which Thales will make a significant contribution: a latest-generation radar with active antennas, an acoustic system with passive and active sonar buoys, electronic and electro-optical warfare systems, as well as magnetic anomaly detection and self-protection systems. The aircraft must also be able to carry communications equipment, including satellite communications, as well as the weapons required for anti-submarine and anti-ship warfare, in particular torpedoes and the future anti-ship missile (FMAN).
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