Farnborough 2026: BAE Systems unveils BlackThorn warhead family

BAE Systems' blast warhead for 40 mm munitions from its BlackThorn family, unveiled at Farnborough 2026. (Janes/Tom Barton)

BAE Systems revealed a new family of warheads intended primarily for unmanned and missile systems, called BlackThorn, at the Farnborough International Airshow 2026, held from 20-24 July.

The family consists of blast, fragmentation, anti-armour, and multi-effect warheads for 40 mm, 70 mm, or 120 mm (actual diameter 127 mm) munitions. They have been designed specifically for platforms including one-way effectors [OWE], counter-unmanned aerial vehicle (C-UAV) systems, missiles, and unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs), according to BAE Systems.

BAE Systems BlackThorn warhead familyTypeLength (mm)Weight (kg)40 mm blast960.3540 mm enhanced fragmenting960.3540 mm explosively formed penetrator (EFP) 960.3770 mm blast1862.270 mm enhanced fragmenting1862.270 mm EFP1862.3570 mm shaped charge1862.2127 mm blast30511.8127 mm enhanced fragmenting30511.8127mm EFP30512.42127 mm multi-effect shaped charge2253.25Source: BAE Systems, July 2026

All of the warheads share a modular design, platform agnostic architecture, and electronic safety and arming, according to the company. All sizes and types are, as of July 2026, in low rate initial production for test and evaluation (T&E), Graham Shannon, land capabilities adviser, BAE Systems, told Janes at a media briefing on 21 July. BlackThorn warheads will all be produced at the company's Glascoed site in Wales.

Estonia-based C-UAV company Frankenburg Technologies announced on 21 July that it has selected the 40 mm BlackThorn enhanced fragmentation warhead for its 2 km-range Mark 1 lower-cost surface-to-air missile. With a production site in south-west England, Frankenburg's managing director UK, Dan Hallett, said that the company saw supply chain resilience and production scaling possibilities in the partnership.