M51 SLBM
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| M51 SLBM | |
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| Type | SLBM |
| Service history | |
| In service | 2010 |
| Production history | |
| Manufacturer | EADS Astrium Space Transportation |
| Unit cost | 4 billion Euro for the program |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | 56,000 kg |
| Length | 12.0 m |
| Diameter | 2.3 m |
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| Warhead | M51.1 = 6 TN 75 MIRV using the 100 kt of TNT (420 TJ), with penetration aids. M51.2 (2015) = using the new Tête Nucléaire Océanique |
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| Engine | three stage solid propellant |
| Operational range |
8,000–10,000 km |
| Speed | Mach 25 |
| Guidance system |
Inertial & star positioning |
| Launch platform |
Triomphant class submarines |
The M51 SLBM is the French Navy's future submarine launched ballistic missile, designed to replace the M45 SLBM (In French terminology the MSBS - Mer-Sol-Balistique-Stratégique “Sea-ground-Strategic ballistic”).
Each missile carries six independently targetable TN 75 thermonuclear warheads.
The three-stage engine of the M51 is directly derived from the propellant boosters of Ariane 5.
The missiles are a compromise over the M5 SLBM design, which is to have a range of 11,000 km (6,200 miles) and carry 10 TNO MIRV of the new generation (Tête Nucléaire Océanique, “Oceanic nuclear warhead”). The M51 will enter service in 2010.
[edit] Flight tests
The M51 performed its first flight test (unarmed) on the 9 November 2006 from the French missile flight test centre in Biscarrosse (Landes). The target was reached twenty minutes later, in the north-west of the Atlantic Ocean.[1]
A second successful test was carried out on the 21 June 2007 [2].
[edit] Operators
France: The French Navy expects to have the M51 enter service in 2010, and will be the only operator of the missile.
[edit] External links
- nrdc.org: Table of French Nuclear Forces, 2002
- globalsecurity.org M-5 / M-51
- M51 Gives France More Flexible Deterrent To Meet Changing Threats, Aviation Week
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