Eurosam newsroom
PRESS RELEASEFirst Qualification Firing of Aster 15 Naval Missile From Italian SAAM/IT System
(February 2002)
PARIS---Eurosam has successfully completed the first qualification
firing of its Aster 15 Naval missile from an Italian naval defence
system known as SAAM/IT (Superficie-Aria Anti-Missile/Italia,
or Surface-to-Air Anti-Missile/Italy). The launch was conducted from the Italian "Carabiniere" experimental
ship at the French DGA’s Mediterranean Test Centre (Centre d'Essais
de la Méditerranée - CEM), off the coast of Toulon, south-west
France. The firing resulted in a direct hit against the target from a
distance of 7 km and at an altitude of 1000m. The missile followed
a nominal trajectory. The SAAM/IT naval defence system shares the same subsystems as
the French SAAM/FR system, notably the Sylver vertical launcher
and Aster 15 Naval missiles, but the MBDA-designed fire control
system is integrated with an Italian multi-function EMPAR radar.
Both the SAAM/FR and SAAM/IT programmes are run by EUROSAM, a
joint venture comprising MBDA and Thales. The latest firing follows qualification of the French SAAM/FR
configuration, which uses an Arabel multi-function radar. SAAM/FR
was qualified on 30 October. This qualification firing resulted
in a direct hit against a late-launched target at a distance of
10km and 100m above the water. -ends-