Europe unveils Tomahawk-like land-based cruise missile in Paris

European defence company MBDA has presented a new land-based cruise missile called the Land Cruise Missile (LCM), which is being positioned as an analogue to the American Tomahawk, Defense News reports.

The LCM was showcased at the Eurosatory defence exhibition in Paris. The system is a modification of the Naval Cruise Missile (NCM) and is expected to enter the market by 2030. MBDA’s commercial director for strike, Sophie Bourdais, said the LCM will feature extended range, reduced detectability, and improved resistance to electronic countermeasures.

“It’s been a few years now, so we’ve made progress on a number of systems and we’ve made progress on the whole package,” Bourdais stated. “We have really good reasons to believe that we’ll be able to improve the overall performance of our missiles.”

According to the report, Europe currently lacks long-range strike weapons capable of providing deterrence through the ability to threaten Russian assets. This gap is being addressed through new initiatives such as the European Long-Range Strike Approach (ELSA).

Bourdais said MBDA is promoting the new missile within the ELSA programme, with several countries expressing interest in the LCM. The company is also in talks with France’s Directorate General of Armaments. MBDA aims to sign a contract for the first production batch this year.

The NCM, which forms the basis of the LCM, is itself derived from the SCALP-EG missile. It has an estimated range of around 1,000 kilometres and carries a 250-kilogram warhead.

By Jeyhun Aghazada