France picks MBDA-Safran combo to supply multiple rocket launcher

(Rudy Ruitenberg – Defense News) France has started exclusive negotiations with French defense firm Safran and missile maker MBDA to supply domestically produced rocket artillery as well as munitions, Armed Forces Minister Catherine Vautrin announced at the Eurosatory defense show near Paris on Monday. France snubbed a competing offer for a multiple-rocket launcher from a team of Thales and ArianeGroup as well as options from Lockheed Martin with HIMARS and Hanwha Aerospace’s Chunmoo launcher, with Vautrin noting that the country retained a sovereign solution. – France picks MBDA-Safran combo to supply multiple rocket launcher