Brazil’s Cruise Missile Development Program Enters Final Phase

31 Maret 2018

MTC-300 Matador cruise missile for Astros MLRS (photo : Defence Blog)

The Brazilian Armed Forces nearing final development stage of cruise missile that is under development by Avibras for the ASTROS 2020 system.

The Brazilian cruise missile, the MTC-300 or Matador, with 300 km of range and accuracy in the 50-meter scale, enters the final development stage this year. The first delivery to the Brazilian army is expected to be done by 2020, however, all development stages are expected to be fully cleared by 2023, according to a report of the “O Estado de S.Paulo”.

The MTC-30 missile is the most sophisticated vector of the “Astros 2020” development program, the sixth generation of multiple artillery rocket launcher systems, started 35 years ago by the Brazilian company Avibras, of the city of Sao José dos Campos.

The MTC-30 missile is designed for to destroy strategic targets at medium range with great accuracy and reduced collateral damage The missiles use solid-fuel rockets for launching, and a turbojet during the subsonic cruise flight.

The missile can use a single warhead of 200 kg of high explosive or cluster munition warhead with 64 submunitions for anti-personnel or anti-tank targets.

Astros II Mk 6 of the Indonesian Army (photo : TNI AD)

Avibras also developing this missile for the Navy version, which is to be launched from a warship labeled X-300, which cursory design fins similar to the anti-ship missile ship Exocet.

ASTROS 2020, as a key driver of the Brazilian Army transformation process, is composed of research and development projects, vehicles acquisition and modernization, as well as new facilities, stablishing an efficient, flexible, secure, reliable, and rapidly deployed fire support system, enabling the Land Forces to a vast array of missions, including extra regional dissuasion.

(Defence Blog)