Paris — TDA Armement will begin developing a laser-guided 68mm rocket for delivery to France for the Tiger attack helicopter, the French defense procurement office said.
"The Direction Générale de l'Armement on June 30, 2016, awarded TDA Armement SAS, a Thales subsidiary, a contract for development and acquisition of 68mm laser-guided rockets for the Army Air Corps," the Direction Générale de l'Armement (DGA) said in a statement. First delivery is due in 2020 to arm the Tiger Mk2 standard helicopter.
A DGA spokesman declined to give financial details. The contract was worth "several tens of millions of euro," a Thales spokesperson said.
The US Army has shown interest in the rocket's wireless induction developed by TDA, weekly magazine Air & Cosmos reported Oct. 10, 2014. Wireless induction is a digital technology used to fire a fuse and light the rocket motor. The US Army's interest stems from French operations with the weapon in Afghanistan.
That wireless connection, which allows target data to be sent to the rocket, is not to be found on other guided rockets, the DGA said.
The main benefit of the laser-guided rocket is a low cost and effectiveness in hitting a light truck on the move or a small building at a range of up to 5 kilometers, the DGA said.
The guided version is some 10 times more expensive than an unguided rocket, but the weapon is much less expensive than a laser-guided missile, Air & Cosmos reported. The unit price of the APKWS II guided rocket from BAE Systems is some $30,000, while the Hellfire II is almost four times higher, the magazine reported.
