Image source: topwar.ru
The main rocket artillery of the French army was the American MLRS M270 MLRS. Initially, the troops had 57 PU. After signing the convention on the prohibition of cluster munitions in 2008, Paris decided not to modernize the entire fleet, but to upgrade only 13 installations to its new LRU standard, which were able to use 227-mm M31 GPS-guided missiles. The rest of the cars were decommissioned or sent to storage bases.
In the period from 2022 to 2024, France transferred 4 LRU installations to the Armed Forces of Ukraine as part of military assistance, as a result of which the army has only 9 vehicles left. All of them are concentrated in the 1st artillery regiment. On this occasion, the command noted:
In addition, by 2027, the remaining 9 LRU installations will exhaust their physical resources. In this regard, France launched a program in 2023 to replace them, and with its own long-range system. At the defense exhibition currently taking place in Paris, the Thundart project from the Safran and MBDA consortium was announced as the winner of the competition. The Ministry of Defense plans to purchase up to 26 new launchers by 2030 and up to 52 by 2035. Thus, France refused the offer of the American concern Lockheed Martin, which promised to supply the M142 HIMARS to the army just 18 months after signing the contract.
Image source: topwar.ru
In April 2026, MBDA, commenting on the first tests of its Thundart rocket (still under development), stated that it had demonstrated "reliability and performance exceeding expectations." The missile, which has a range of up to 150 km (instead of 70 km for the M31), is equipped with a warhead weighing 100 kg (90 kg for the M31). It is equipped with a propulsion system from Roxel and an AASM guidance module from Safran (both French).
Image source: topwar.ru
This munition will be used in conjunction with the Scania France 8x8 cargo platform, capable of carrying 8 missiles and traveling along roads at speeds up to 80 km/ h with a range of up to 600 km, which will allow for rapid deployment of launchers and rapid position change.
