DCNS completes 100th Sylver

Richard Scott

Thursday, 10 September, 2009

French shipbuilding, systems and services group DCNS (Stand 1941) has achieved a major production milestone after completing the manufacture of its 100th Sylver vertical missile launcher.

The unit, an A50 eight-cell module, will be shipped to BVT Surface Fleet in the UK for integration in a new Type 45 destroyer for the Royal Navy.

Manufactured by DCNS at its facility in Ruelle, located near Angoulême in southwest France, the Sylver family has spawned a series of launchers able to accommodate a wide variety of missile types.

The original Sylver A43 and A50 units were designed for compatibility with the Aster 15 and Aster 30 anti-air missiles, while the latest A70 – now in production for the French Navy’s FREMM frigate programme – has been designed to launch the Scalp Naval cruise missile.

The compact Sylver A35 has recently been qualified following a series of test firings. It is designed for smaller self-defence missiles such as the VL MICA and Crotale VT1-VL.

The navies of France, Italy, Saudi Arabia, Singapore and the UK have so far selected Sylver. DCNS has orders for 48 Sylver modules in hand, and adds that it has “good potential” for further sales.