Exocet MM40 Block 3c: New anti-ship missile with next generation seeker

Europe’s leading missile manufacturer MBDA opened the doors of its La Selles-Saint-Denis site exclusively to Naval News. It is in this facility that the company conducts the final integration of the new Exocet MM40 Block 3c anti-ship missile. ===================== Pierre-Marie Belleau, product line owner for Deep Strike weapons, while talking about the latest variant of Exocet missile family, underlined the importance of the all-weather and environment capability of the missile, which is essential to sustain deterrence. Given the increasing density of the electronic warfare in all areas of combat, as observed currently in the Black Sea and in Ukraine, the MM40 Block 3C is configured to work efficiently in any conditions no matter how dense the EW spectrum is. EW resilience is the core differentiator of the Block 3C compared to other anti-ship missiles currently available on the market. The main difference between the Block 3 and Block 3c is the new seeker of the missile. The J-Band coherent seeker represents the latest technology in missile seekers: It brings robustness against all forms of electronic warfare jamming. Pierre-Marie Belleau also mentioned that the MM40 B3c program is now in full production. MBDA has already started the deliveries to the French Navy. Naval News also visited the final integration facility where Block 3 and and Block 3C missiles take shape. The building is the largest missile production facility in Europe. MBDA can easily ramp up production to support new MM40 Block 3c customers. Capt. Jerome Henry, the Commanding Officer of Air Defense FREMM Alsace, welcomed Naval News onboard and shared his experience of being the first to test-fire the new missile from his frigate. He stated that the firing took place in a realistic environment scenario, and added that the firing was successful. He also underlined that the biggest difference of the MM40 Block 3c missile is its EW resilience and accuracy. Captain Henry stated that the Block 3c missile brings the capability to destroy adversary warships, especially well-defended ones. All of the first rank vessels of the French Navy will be upgraded with the new Exocet MM40 Block 3c missile. According to MBDA, the MM40 Block 3c will not be the final version of the missile, the company will keep improving the missile family aligned with the technological developments in naval warfare. It will eventually be fielded alongside the next generation of MBDA strike and anti-ship missiles which will be the FC/ASW family. ===================== For new videos every week, subscribe here! Follow us on Twitter: Follow us on LinkedIn: Like us on Facebook: Check out our daily naval defense news coverage at: NAVAL NEWS is fully focused on naval topics. We cover the latest naval defense shows & events. We also report on naval technology from all over the world. is updated daily with in-depth features, industry, and naval forces news round-ups, event coverage, video reports and more. Our top of the line site is responsive across all mobile and desktop devices.