The new NGDS configuration, which holds six decoys and eight Mistral MANPADS missiles, directly responds to the recent experiences of European navies in the Red Sea. These experiences, which involved defending against incoming missiles and UAVs, have led Safran to develop a hybrid system that can both deceive and destroy threats.
Naval News reported that the new launcher was revealed during a press tour of Euronaval 2024 exhibition (To be held between 4-7th November).
The new NGDS configuration holds six decoys and eight Mistral MANPADS missiles, which can fool incoming missiles and shoot down aircraft and UAVs. The recent experiences of the European navies in the Red Sea explain why Safran embarked on a hybrid system like this.
Warships operating in the area often found themselves defending against anti-ship missiles with RF seekers and kamikaze UAVs. In some cases, expensive air defence missiles were used to shoot down much cheaper UAVs, which is undesirable.
In such cases, considerably less expensive solutions like Mistral might pull down the logistical and financial burden on the operating navies in the Red Sea or similar environments. Mistral Mk3 with a revised IR seeker can engage targets as far as eight kilometres.
Additionally, the French Navy is no stranger to using Mistral on its warships, with Sadral PDMS on Charles de Gaulle aircraft carriers, Mistral-class LHDs, and modernised La Fayette-class frigates.
