European MBDA offers tactical cruise missiles to India

Naples, Italy: European consortium MBDA has offered their 300 km-range Taurus stand-off missile system to the Indian Air Force (IAF) as inventory for its heavy platform fighter jets, such as the Russian Su-30MKI. MBDA is a specialist missile and defence systems  producing firm with manufacturing facilities  spread over the European region and the United States.

"We have received a Request for Information (RFI) from the IAF for a stand-off long range missile from the IAF and we have offered the Taurus missiles as we feel that it meets all the desired requirements," Anders Axebark, the business development manager for the missile systems told a group of Indian journalists here.

The Taurus air-to-ground missiles are manufactured by the Germany-based Taurus Systems GmbH, which is a joint venture between MBDA and Swedish defence major Saab.

India has announced plans to upgrade the first batch of its Sukhoi-30MKIs in collaboration with Russia and is looking to enhance the capabilities of this 4++ generation fighter aircraft by equipping it with new radars, long-range weapons and avionics.

Axebark said the IAF has already been briefed by the company at the air headquarters in New Delhi about the operational advantages offered by the missile.

"The German Air Force is also planning to carry out a test-firing of the missile for the IAF in November at one of the field-firing ranges in South Africa," he said.