A “new demonstration of the credibility of nuclear deterrence”, believes the Air and Space Force. On Wednesday, the Strategic Air Forces (FAS) “succeeded in the first force assessment firing” of the renovated version of its nuclear medium-range air-to-ground missile (ASMP-R), “without military payload.” »
“During a flight representative of a nuclear raid, the Rafale Bs and an A330 MRTT tanker plane from the FAS flew for more than 7 hours over the national territory” explains the Air Force. The raid “faced a threat of opposition by air-to-air and ground-to-air means from the Air and Space Force,” continues the Ministry of the Armed Forces in a press release.
This operation was carried out “above the national territory”. The firing of the missile and its free flight were monitored by the Directorate General of Armament (DGA) from the DGA Missile Testing sites of Biscarrosse (Landes), Hourtin (Gironde) and Quimper (Finistère).
A fourth generation nuclear missile planned for 2035
The ASMP-R missile, developed by MBDA, was fired as part of Operation Durandal. The Minister of the Armed Forces Sébastien Lecornu welcomed the success of this first test firing on X. “This operation, planned for a long time, realizes the ambition provided for in the military programming law [LPM] for our nuclear deterrence, of which it demonstrates the excellence and operational credibility. » This law effectively protected nuclear deterrence as the keystone of French defense, by allocating 13% of military credits over this period to its modernization and sustainability.
The Ministry of the Armed Forces adds in its press release that “the intrinsic performances of the renovated missile” have been reinforced, “maintaining the credibility of the airborne nuclear component of deterrence in the face of evolving threats until the arrival of the future air missile -fourth generation nuclear ground (ASN4G) by 2035.”