Kongsberg has signed an agreement with Diehl Defence and MBDA Deutschland to develop Norway and Germany’s 3SM Tyrfing supersonic strike missile.
The partnership will help the three companies share decades of missile development experience to create maneuverable long-distance missiles that can also be offered to allied customers in the future.
The companies will also collaborate with the Norwegian and German Defense Forces, as well as national research organizations, to determine the 3SM Tyrfing’s features and capabilities.
Diehl Defence CEO Helmut Rauch stressed the importance of combining the companies’ expertise in creating a highly advanced missile.
“We are proud having established a team of the best experts of our companies, who complement each other, trust each other and contribute their individual knowledge and skills. Together, we will develop a game changer with 3SM that none of us could develop on our own,” Rauch said.
The missile is expected to be delivered by 2035.
Creating Stronger Capabilities
The companies have agreed that despite being in the project’s initial design phase, the 3SM Tyrfing program will be able to create a long-range strike missile that can neutralize future surface threats.
“As we have seen over the last 2 years, stand-off weapons are crucial for credible deterrence and defence,” MBDA Deutschland Managing Director Thomas Gottschild said.
Once operational, the missiles will be used by Norwegian and German vessels as a complement to their Naval Strike Missiles (NSMs).
It is expected to match the NSM’s maximum speed of Mach 0.93 (714 miles/1,148 kilometers per hour) and operational range of more than 120 miles (190 kilometers).