US and France 'interested in Brimstone'

20 April 2011

France and the US have expressed an interest in acquiring dual-mode Brimstone air-to-ground missiles after witnessing them in action in Libya, it has emerged.

Air Vice Marshal Baz North, in a speech to the Air Power Association on 19 April, said the missiles were "now being sought by both the United States of America and the French".

AVM North said Brimstone was a "highly accurate, lethal and very low collateral damage weapon", according to Flightglobal.

RAF Tornados have successfully launched dozens of the 50kg missiles against Colonel Gaddafi's ground forces in the Libya campaign.

A source told Defencemanagement.com that allies were showing interest in the missile after it became the RAF's "weapon of choice" in assaults on Libyan ground forces.

"There's nothing with quite the fidelity of the missile, and more importantly it delivers a disabling punch without taking out the neighbourhood," the source said

Brimstone's dual-mode seeker was introduced following an urgent operational requirement from the RAF in 2007.

Dual-mode Brimstones incorporate a semi-active laser guidance system as well as the millimetric wave system found on the original Brimstone.