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France MBDA
SAMP/T (Aster 30)
A Franco-Italian ground-based air-defense system built around the Aster 30 missile, capable of engaging aircraft, cruise missiles and short-range ballistic missiles. It has been supplied to Ukraine as part of European air-defense assistance and is jointly operated by France and Italy.
In service since 2011 · 3 operator countries
Compiled from public sources ·primary reference ↗ ·last verified 2026-07-01
120
km range
20,000
m altitude
10
targets
140
km radar
💲 ≈ $400,000,000, Approximate cost per battery set
Procurement snapshot
Availability & export
French export-licensed
CIEEMG inter-ministerial approval; broadly export-oriented.
Channel: DGA / direct commercial
Fielded & proven
Limited · 3 operators
In service since 2011. Status: active.
Lifecycle cost (est.)
$1.0B – $1.4B
Acquisition is only ~30% of lifecycle cost, operating & support dominate over ~25 yrs. Rough 2.5–3.5× the unit price.
Interoperability
Derived guidance from public data, export regime by country of origin, lifecycle from the GAO ~30% acquisition rule. Verify eligibility, pricing and offsets with the manufacturer and your acquisition authority.
Full specifications
Performance
Speed, range, altitude and engagement capability.
- Max speed (Mach)
Maximum speed as a multiple of the speed of sound. Mach 2+ is typical for air-superiority fighters.
- 4.5 Mach Stronger than 60% of air-defense systems
- Engagement range
Maximum distance at which an air-defense system can intercept targets. Higher covers more airspace.
- 120 km Stronger than 68% of air-defense systems
- Engagement altitude
Maximum target altitude the system can reach.
- 20,000 m Stronger than 52% of air-defense systems
- Simultaneous targets
Number of targets the system can engage at once. Higher resists saturation attacks.
- 10 Stronger than 65% of air-defense systems
Firepower
Armament, payload and guidance.
- Main armament
Primary weapon: main gun, cannon or missile type.
- Aster 30 interceptor missile
- Warhead
Warhead mass. Heavier generally means larger effect radius, at the cost of range.
- 15 kg Stronger than 34% of air-defense systems
- Warhead type
Blast-fragmentation, shaped charge (HEAT), penetrator, thermobaric or nuclear-capable.
- Directed-fragmentation
- Guidance
How the weapon finds its target: inertial, GPS/GLONASS, active/semi-active radar, infrared, laser, TV, wire.
- Active radar homing, Inertial + datalink midcourse
Sensors & avionics
Radar, sensor suite and datalinks.
- Radar
Primary radar. AESA (active electronically scanned array) is the current state of the art.
- Arabel / Ground Fire 300 AESA radar
- Radar range
Published detection range against a typical fighter-sized target. Higher sees first.
- 140 km Stronger than 48% of air-defense systems
- Datalink
Network connectivity: Link 16, MADL, national datalinks. Enables cooperative engagement.
- PAAMS network, NATO Link 16
Program
Cost, production scale and operators.
- Unit cost
Approximate flyaway/unit cost where public. Defense pricing varies hugely by contract, offsets and configuration. Lower is cheaper.
- $400,000,000 Stronger than 29% of air-defense systems
- Operator countries
Number of countries operating the system. More operators means broader support ecosystem.
- 3 Stronger than 54% of air-defense systems
Specifications compiled from public MBDA and reference sources ↗. Published defense figures are approximations, treat comparisons as directional. Last verified 2026-07-01.
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What is the engagement range of the MBDA SAMP/T (Aster 30)? +
The MBDA SAMP/T (Aster 30) has a maximum engagement range of 120 km.
What is the main armament of the MBDA SAMP/T (Aster 30)? +
The MBDA SAMP/T (Aster 30)'s primary weapon is the Aster 30 interceptor missile.
What is the MBDA SAMP/T (Aster 30) used for? +
The MBDA SAMP/T (Aster 30) is a air defense system typically used for air defense.
How many countries operate the MBDA SAMP/T (Aster 30)? +
The MBDA SAMP/T (Aster 30) is operated by 3 countries.
How much does the MBDA SAMP/T (Aster 30) cost? +
The MBDA SAMP/T (Aster 30) has an approximate unit cost of 400,000,000 USD. Defense pricing varies by contract, offsets and configuration, treat this as directional.
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