French submarine Le Terrible has successfully launched an M51 ballistic missile with a launch range of up to 10,000 km, which can carry up to 10 nuclear warheads of 100 kilotons
The French National Navy has tested the M51 solid-fuel ballistic missile. This was announced by Defence Minister Sébastien Lecornu.
Here's What We Know
The ballistic missile is placed on submarines. The test was carried out using the submarine Le Terrible. This is the sixth time in a row that it has participated in such tests.
Tir d'essai réussi du missile M51 depuis le SNLE Le Terrible !
- Sébastien Lecornu (@SebLecornu) April 19, 2023
Le succès de ce tir d'essai - le 11ème du M51 -, sans charge militaire, matérialise la crédibilité et la robustesse de notre dissuasion nucléaire.
Merci à @DGA,@CEA_Officiel, @Armees_Gouv pour la conduite de ce tir. pic.twitter.com/VjVCqIrRVp
The M51 rocket was developed by the Ariane Group, a subsidiary of Airbus and Safran. It has a height of 12 meters and a diameter of 2.3 meters. The missile is capable of carrying 6-10 Tête nucléaire océanique (TNO) nuclear warheads. The fusion charge has a yield of 100 kilotons TNT equivalent.
The M51 was adopted for service in 2010. It has a maximum launch range of 10,000 km. It is rumoured that the missile can reach a speed of Mach 26 (over 30,000 km/h) in flight, but this information has not been confirmed.
As for the Le Terrbile submarine, it was unveiled in the spring of 2008 and entered service 2.5 years later. The submarine can carry up to 16 M51 ballistic missiles, F17 torpedoes and Exocet SM39 anti-ship missiles.
Source: @SebLecornu
