MBDA unveiled a jet-powered loitering munition called ONE WAY EFFECTOR at the 2025 Paris Air Show. The system has since been renamed DELUGE. It’s a ground-launched, low-cost weapon designed to be fired in large numbers, or salvoes, to overwhelm and expose enemy air-defense networks. France’s defense procurement agency, the DGA, signed the first development-and-production contract with MBDA in January 2026.
What is DELUGE actually built to do?
It’s designed to sit between artillery and high-end cruise missiles. Ground units fire it in large numbers, or salvoes, at enemy air-defense sites. The goal isn’t a single precision strike. It’s to force air defenses to expend interceptors or reveal their positions by firing on cheap, expendable targets, clearing a path for follow-on strikes.
What are its specs?
Reported figures put it at roughly a 3-meter wingspan, powered by a small turbojet. It flies at about 400 km/h with a range in the 500 km class. Its warhead falls in the 40 to 50 kg range, depending on the source. MBDA leaned on mature, low-cost components, including partnerships with automotive manufacturers, to keep the price down.
Is it actually in service yet?
No. The DGA’s January 2026 contract covers development and production, with the first production batch planned for 2027. MBDA has claimed a production capacity of up to 1,000 units a month once manufacturing ramps up, though that figure hasn’t been independently verified. Contract value hasn’t been publicly disclosed.
Sources: MBDA, Army Recognition.
