ILA 2024: MBDA unveils RCM² effector

Seen alongside the Eurofighter at ILA 2024, the RCM² will be able to perform both kinetic strike and electronic warfare jamming and decoy roles in highly contested and denied airspace. (Janes/Gareth Jennings)

MBDA Deutschland presented its new unmanned Remote Carrier Multidomain Multirole Effector (RCM²) for the first time at the ILA Berlin Air Show running from 5 to 9 June.

The German arm of the European missile house described its RCM² remote carrier (RC) as a multidomain platform that is able to perform both kinetic strike and electronic warfare (EW) jamming and decoy roles in highly contested and denied airspace.

“The RCM² … is designed for a wide range of applications as well as for combat mass. It offers an effect at short and long distances. In addition, RCM² has a loitering capability and can also engage targets in environments without GPS reception,” MBDA Deutschland said. As noted by the company, the interactive guidance and handover of the command of the RCM² swarms can be carried out by any operator connected to the network.

Speaking at ILA 2024 on 5 June, MBDA Deutschland managing director Thomas Gottschild said the RCM² and its other effectors are the “swords” of the company's portfolio, which also features the “shields” of ground-based air defence, saying, “You need the offensive side of things to attack your opponent.” He added that RCM² “will be very interesting for different use scenarios across the different domains”.

Specifications released by MBDA at ILA 2024 give the 4 m-long RCM² a 340 kg weight (without booster), a global navigation system (GNS), an inertial navigation system (INS), a terrain contour matching (TERCOM), an imaging infrared (IIR) seeker, and a 500 km+ range.