The French Directorate General of Armaments has activated an additional procurement option for KNDS France’s MX-10 Damocles loitering munition, seeking to increase production capacity and provide more systems to the Army and Navy. Authorities have not released the financial value, number of units or timetable associated with the latest order. The acquisition builds on a July 2024 contract awarded under France’s short-range remotely operated munition programme. The original procurement was expected to deliver 460 platforms by July 2026, while initial deliveries to the military’s Joint Munitions Service reportedly began in December of the following year. The MX-10 belongs to KNDS’s Mataris unmanned aircraft family and is manufactured in partnership with Delair, based in Toulouse. Its development received French government support through an innovation initiative launched in 2022. The electric-powered quadcopter can carry a 550-gram explosive incendiary fragmentation payload, provide live video transmission up to impact and be prepared for deployment in less than five minutes. Designed for operations in contested airspace, it incorporates electronics intended to resist jamming and safety features for launch operations. Its reported operating range is 10 kilometres, with flight endurance reaching 40 minutes.
