Loitering munition from KNDS: Mataris family with four systems for short and medium range

KNDS France is now offering a complete product line of loitering munitions. The four loitering munition systems (LMS) were created in cooperation with Delair and EOS Technologie and share the name Mataris. They are designed for different operational requirements at short and medium ranges.

One of these LMS is already in use in Ukraine, another is soon to enter service with the French armed forces.

By the end of this year, KNDS also intends to further develop the medium-range LMS. It is based on platforms whose delivery to all three branches of the French armed forces is to begin immediately.

Loitering munition already in service – in France and Ukraine

Four types of remotely operated munition make up the Mataris line. Each carries a warhead developed specifically by KNDS:

• MT-10 – rotary-wing, range ten kilometres
• MX-10 Damocles – quadcopter, range also ten kilometres
• MV-25 Oskar – fixed-wing, range 25 kilometres
• MV-100 Veloce 330 – fixed-wing, range 100 kilometres

The range, developed in a short time, aims to close a gap in the French military's arsenal.

From July, the French Army will take over the MX-10 Damocles. It was developed, safety-qualified and manufactured in just twelve months – the response to the French Ministry of Defence's short-range LMS programme. Delair supplies the quadcopter airframe, while the fragmentation-incendiary warhead comes from KNDS Ammo France. The MX-10 can engage infantry squads, unarmoured and even lightly armoured vehicles.

The MV-25 Oskar has also already proven itself in operations: it took only two years from the first development steps to use in Ukraine. The system was selected under the COLIBRI project, launched in 2022 by the French Defence Innovation Agency (AID). In June 2024, the MV-25 OSKAR was tested with a live warhead. The Ukrainian Armed Forces gave the system positive feedback.

Towards a medium-range MTO with EOS Technologie

Against medium- and long-range threats, KNDS relies on its partnership with EOS Technologie. Its Veloce 330 platform reaches a range of 100 kilometres, flies faster than 400 km/h and has an aerodynamic efficiency of 30. For it, KNDS Ammo France has developed a 2.5-kilogram anti-tank warhead based on Bonus projectile technology. This MTO can thus neutralise high-value armoured targets. An operational detonation test is planned before the end of the year.

Mataris is easy to operate, safe thanks to an electronic safety device and able to engage a wide range of targets. With it, KNDS presents its latest development in the field of remotely operated munitions. Together with its French partners Delair and EOS Technologie, KNDS is also the first French group to offer such a comprehensive solution.