USMC Predator Production Award Eliminates Risk for Kestrel in UK MoD’s NLAW Programme   

26 February 2002

Team Kestrel (MBDA, Lockheed Martin and INSYS) welcomes the news of the Predator Short Range Anti-Armour Weapon production contract recently awarded by the US Marine Corps to Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control. This award and the second contract planned for later this year means that over 700 Predator rounds will have been produced and 40 more test flights will be completed before Kestrel is built in UK production facilities.

The production contract, combined with the 13 Kestrel firings conducted during the NLAW Project Definition phase, confirms the maturity of the weapon and that there are no outstanding technical, production or programme risks which could jeopardise the UK MOD’s in-service date.

The award is the culmination of an extensive Engineering and Manufacturing Development (E&MD) phase under which we validated our ability to manufacture Predator, and conducted rigorous independent User Trials in which over 250 all-up-rounds, including more than 150 manned firings were completed in a wide range of environmental conditions.

Alan Garwood, MBDA's Chief Operating Officer said: “The Predator contract award is very good news for the Kestrel. We are now extremely confident that Kestrel will be in UK service well before LAW80 stocks are depleted ensuring that the UK Armed Forces will not have a dangerous shortfall in capability.

Ian Stopps, Chief Executive for Lockheed Martin UK highlighted the unique transatlantic solution offered by the Kestrel team for NLAW.

“The Predator production contract is a major achievement. It is particularly satisfying for those of us who have been following the programme since the demonstration phase in the early 1990s, when the first components such as the warhead and fuzing system were evaluated. This was followed by E&MD, which is always the most difficult in which the subsystems were integrated and latest technologies were incorporated and proven.

“The production contract placed by the USMC presents an ideal opportunity for a joint UK/US procurement, with the added potential for joint growth programmes throughout the service life of both Kestrel and Predator,” Stopps said.

He added: “It is particularly exciting that Predator could now lead to a joint programme that will also enhance interoperability between our armed forces who are frequently called on to operate together.”

MBDA, Lockheed Martin and INSYS plus over 30 suppliers will produce Kestrel in the UK if it is selected under the multimillion pound contract, due to be placed by the summer.

INSYS Chairman, Ian Beith, said: “INSYS is pleased to be part of the highly experienced Kestrel team. We have a product, which has been demonstrated to meet the UK MOD’s NLAW requirements. INSYS brings to the team its strategic composite winding capability as used in the manufacture of other anti-armour systems such as LAW80.

NOTES TO EDITORS Team Kestrel (MBDA, Lockheed Martin and INSYS) is offering the world's leading man-portable fire-and-forget short-range anti-armour missile to the UK Armed Forces.

The shoulder-fired, short-range Kestrel system has demonstrated that it can defeat all modern tanks with reactive armour and suppress hard targets such as fortifications or caves. At less than 10Kg Kestrel is the lightest weapon in its class offering the soldier unrivalled manoeuvrability and enhanced survivability from enemy counter-fire. Kestrel can also be fired from enclosed spaces offering the soldier further protection from enemy threats.

Kestrel is being offered in response to the UK Ministry of Defence's requirement for a precision anti-armour capability with high lethality and no field maintenance. Under the Next Generation Lightweight Anti-Armour Weapon programme (NLAW), the British Army needs a new system to replace its ageing LAW80 from 2005

MBDA is Europe’s leading guided weapons group with 45 missile systems in operational service and a further 30 in development for air forces, armies and navies around the world. MBDA has designed and produced a range of anti-armour weapons including the Milan medium-range weapon, in service with 43 countries, Eryx and Hot and is the design authority for the Long Range TRIGAT third generation anti-armour system. The group employs 10,000 across 12 main sites in Europe and the USA and is jointly owned by BAE SYSTEMS (37.5%), EADS (37.5%) and Finmeccanica (25%).

The Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control group employs 8500. Lockheed Martin UK is a unit of Lockheed Martin Corporation and employs approximately 1,000 employees at over 20 facilities including London, Portsmouth, Havant, Southampton, Yeovil, Swindon, Hertford, Bristol and Cornwall. Lockheed Martin Corporation is a global enterprise principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture and integration of advanced technology systems, products and services. The Corporation’s core businesses are systems integration, space, aeronautics, and technology services.

INSYS Limited, formerly Hunting Engineering, is a defence company with annual revenues of £125 million and specialising in weapon, communication and through-life support systems. INSYS produced over 100,000 LAW80 weapons, which entered service in 1988.

Please contact for further information:

Carol Reed
Tel: +44 207 451 6099
Fax: +44 207 451 6089
Mobile: +44 7764 323453
Email: carol.reed@mbda.co.uk 

Mark Douglas
Tel: +44 20 7798 2888
Fax: +44 20 7798-2851
Email: mark.douglas@lmco.com 

Chris Martin
Tel: +44 1525 843765
Fax: +44 1525 843704
Mobile: +44 7711 1521181
Email: marketing@insys-ltd.co.uk