MBDA signed a development contract to equip the Italian Army with a very short-range air defence (VSHORAD) system. Announcing the contract during Paris Air Show currently under way at Le Bourget from 16-20 June 2025, MBDA also unveiled the name of the missile – ‘FULGUR’ – at the core of the system that is a solution to an operational requirement expressed by the Italian Army. FULGUR is a man-portable, supersonic, fire and forget, all weather, day and night interceptor. It is equipped with a seeker with image processing capabilities and counters a threat set that includes small drones, helicopters and fighter jets. Its features and performances are fully compliant with NATO standards. The first delivery of this operational missile and man-portable launcher is aimed for early 2028.
Lorenzo Mariani, Executive Group Director Sales & Business Development MBDA, declared: “We are really proud to support the Italian Army, and offer to future export customers a very short-range solution that integrates into multi-layered air defence systems. FULGUR completes MBDA’s offer in the VSHORAD segment and it will give Europe a totally autonomous and technologically sovereign very short-range capability, able to evolve into an air-to-air system, operational on a rotary wing, thanks to its flexibility and ease of integration.”
FULGUR will also be integrated into SKY WARDEN, MBDA’s modular, scalable, and evolvable flagship system to counter unmanned aerial systems (C-UAS). Capitalizing on MBDA’s expertise in the design and development of air defence systems, the new missile will contribute to reinforcing the company’s offer for a European multi-layered air defence capability, ranging from very short-range to anti-ballistic/anti-hypersonic defence. Being man-portable, FULGUR will also give a tactical advantage when mounted on military vehicles. The missile is designed for ease of integration on current vehicles such as the IDV VTLM2 with Leonardo turrets as well as 8×8 and armoured platforms, or future ones equipped with automated turrets. Fulgur can also be air launched and is suitable for integration onto helicopters.
MBDA is a European multinational corporation specialized in the design, development and manufacturing of missiles and related systems. Headquartered in Le Plessis-Robinson near Paris, France, the company was founded in December 2001 via the merger of three of the most prominent European missile systems companies: the French Aérospatiale Matra Missiles, the Anglo-French Matra BAe Dynamics and the missile division of the Anglo-Italian Alenia Marconi Systems. These businesses were subsidiaries of EADS (now called Airbus), BAE Systems and Finmeccanica (now Leonardo), and all three remain MBDA’s parent companies.
