BOURGES, France – MBDA, a company jointly held by BAE Systems, EADS, and Finmeccanica have completed the integration and factory acceptance test of the first Multi-Purpose Combat Vehicle (MPCV) vehicles designed to operate the Mistral surface to air missile.

Built for export, vehicles represent the first production batch. The MPCV will be shipped for delivery to an undisclosed customer before the end of the year, as announced during the order in February 2011.

MBDA is completing the installation of a final assembly line in that country to provide the customer with the facility for the integration of its own combat vehicles using MBDA’s MPCV kits.

MBDA personnel have also trained the customer’s technical staff during the integration of the first MPCV’s.

Antoine Bouvier, chief executive officer of MBDA, said: “With the MPCV program, MBDA once again demonstrates its mastery of the architecture of air defense systems. Self-funded by MBDA, the MPCV was developed in four years. It then took less than three years after the signing of the first contract to integrate the systems on a vehicle chosen by the end customer, deliver at the agreed date and implement a technology transfer under which the customer will be able, in complete autonomy, to keep its equipment in operational condition.”

The MPCV, developed by MBDA in cooperation with Rheinmetall Defence Electronics (RDE) of Germany, has been designed to meet the requirements for a multi–role mobile weapon system.

According to MBDA, the first development, is aimed at air defense and comprises a motorized and stabilized turret that includes electro-optical sensors, a small caliber gun and four, ready-to-fire Mistral missiles with four more missiles stored in the vehicle for re-loading.

Mistral is a short-range (6 km class) surface-to-air missile designed for intercepting a wide variety of aerial targets including those with even a low infrared signature.

It is also designed to act against maneuvering targets, fixed-wing aircraft, nap-of-the-earth helicopters, unmanned aerial vehicles, cruise missiles as well as moving land vehicles and Fast Inshore Attack Craft at sea.

Mistral, in its land, naval and airborne applications, has been selected by 40 armed forces of 28 countries. More than 17,000 missiles have been produced.