The Meteor beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile passed a significant milestone in its integration on the F-35 with its first jettison from the internal weapons bay of a Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning II in the United States on 7 October. The trial represents an important step forward for the F-35 METEOR integration programme. The successfully completed developmental test is the first in a series of METEOR jettison flight trials. Jettison testing evaluates how cleanly and safely a missile detaches from a host aircraft or launch platform under normal operating conditions or during an emergency abort. These tests ensure the weapon separates cleanly without impacting the fuselage, damaging wing structures, or disrupting the vehicle’s flight dynamics.
The Meteor is a European active radar guided beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile (BVRAAM) developed and manufactured by MBDA. It offers a multi-shot capability (multiple launches against multiple targets), and has the ability to engage highly maneuverable targets such as jet aircraft, and small targets such as UAVs and cruise missiles in a heavy electronic countermeasures (ECM) environment with a range in excess of 200 kilometres (110 nmi). A solid-fueled ramjet motor allows the missile to cruise at a speed of over Mach 4 and provides the missile with thrust and mid-course acceleration. A two-way data link enables the launch aircraft to provide mid-course target updates or retargeting if required, including data from other parties.
The flight trial demonstrated safe jettison within a complex aerodynamic environment from the the short take-off and vertical-landing F-35B weapons bay and provided essential data to refine the predictive digital models used to assess weapon release characteristics. METEOR will now be put through a series of release profiles over the coming months to validate safe separation across the F-35’s operational envelope. These developmental releases will culminate in live firings to confirm both separation and weapon fly-out performance under varying release conditions.
The weapon test asset used in the trial was prepared and loaded by a combined UK/US F 35 ITF team comprising personnel from the Royal Navy, Royal Air Force and Lockheed Martin. The sortie was flown by a Royal Navy F 35 Test Pilot assigned to the Air and Space Warfare Centre (ASWC) and embedded within the F 35 ITF. Their work, alongside support from the UK Ministry of Defence, US Department of Defense, Italian Ministero della Difesa, Lockheed Martin, BAE Systems, MBDA and Northrop Grumman, underpins a collective effort that shows the strength of allied partnerships. The progress on the integration directly contributes to the advancement of the UK and Italy’s Combat Air capability, increasing air-to-air weapon options and enhancing lethality.
