Britain orders hundreds of air defence missiles - Replaces those LMMs fired in Iran War

[u/Intergalatic_Baker]

https://ukdefencejournal.org.uk/britain-orders-hundreds-of-air-defence-missiles/

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[u/Intergalatic_Baker]

The Ministry of Defence has signed new contracts with Thales in the UK for hundreds more Lightweight Multirole Missiles, an order intended to rebuild stockpiles and support the air defence of British forces in the Middle East, according to the department.

The contracts, announced on 1 June 2026, are worth a combined £36 million. According to the Ministry of Defence, deliveries will begin in the coming months and run through 2026. The most recent agreement was placed by the National Armaments Director Group in May and follows a further order for the same missile in April.

The Lightweight Multirole Missile, known as LMM, is designed and built by Thales at its Belfast facility, where the work supports around 700 jobs. The department said the orders form part of a wider effort, run with the National Armaments Director Group, to strengthen resilience in munitions supply chains so that the UK can sustain operations alongside allies.

The LMM is a lightweight precision-guided weapon developed for use against a range of targets including small aircraft, fast boats and, increasingly, uncrewed systems. It has been adopted across all three British services, and is fired from the Royal Navy’s Wildcat helicopters as well as from ground-based launchers.

According to the Ministry of Defence, the missile has been used to defeat drone attacks in the Middle East, with more than 100 drones shot down using the weapon, including by RAF Regiment gunners operating the Rapid Sentry air defence system.

Defence Secretary John Healey described the orders as the government’s industrial partnership with the defence sector in practice. “Our UK defence industry is the backbone of our Armed Forces. This is our new partnership with industry in action,” he said. “We’re getting UK-built kit into the hands of our forces faster as we support good skilled jobs and drive growth across the UK. These interceptor missiles are battle-proven – successfully used in action by our RAF sharp shooters over recent months.” He added that the missiles would help British forces keep the UK and its partners more secure in the Middle East and beyond.

The contracts come as the UK has increased its military presence across the Middle East, with the Ministry of Defence reporting more than 1,000 personnel deployed in the region, among them fast jet squadrons and specialist counter-drone teams. British air defence assets have also operated from UK bases in Cyprus, where Wildcat helicopters carrying the missile have been used in the defence of bases and allied forces.

The LMM was originally developed for the helicopter-launched role before being adapted for ground and naval launchers, and its growing use against drones reflects a wider shift in air defence priorities. The proliferation of cheap uncrewed aircraft has placed a premium on interceptors that can engage them at low cost relative to larger surface-to-air missiles, and the LMM sits in that category.

[u/inevitablelizard → u/Intergalatic_Baker]

LMM is also used by Ukraine, it can be fired by starstreak launchers and the vehicle mounted versions.

[u/Mindless_Use7567 → u/Intergalatic_Baker]

Thank you. Sounds like the government is taking domestic defence capabilities seriously.

[u/Minute-Improvement57 → u/Mindless_Use7567]

The strange thing about it is that Keir managed to embroil himself in a stupid row with Trump through PR condemning US action and claiming (falsely, it turns out) that he was keeping the UK out of it, when there is barely a cigarette paper between the role the UK took under Labour and the one it would have taken under any other party:

The contracts come as the UK has increased its military presence across the Middle East, with the Ministry of Defence reporting more than 1,000 personnel deployed in the region, among them fast jet squadrons and specialist counter-drone teams. British air defence assets have also operated from UK bases in Cyprus, where Wildcat helicopters carrying the missile have been used in the defence of bases and allied forces.

[u/AzureRathalos97 → u/Intergalatic_Baker]

The Lightweight Multirole Missile, known as LMM,

And here was me confused why they were talking about Large Manguage Models

[u/bidahtibull]

The Iran war was such a stupid move.

The IRGC are about to takeover now too.

[u/Intergalatic_Baker → u/bidahtibull]

We didn’t start it, nor did we do anything but shoot down munitions attacking allies in the region.

[u/bitch_fitching → u/Intergalatic_Baker]

I feel like European leaders have been sleeping at the wheel for 30 years. We didn't start it, but like Russia/Ukraine and other issues, we didn't prepare or try to prevent. If anything, we've spend the last few years weakening ourselves to the consequences.

[u/GAdvance → u/bitch_fitching]

What on earth could have been done to prevent it?

Give the guy who tried to shoot trump some better training?

[u/bidahtibull → u/Intergalatic_Baker]

I think we're doing abit more than that but our hands were tied, really.

I'm not blaming the UK.

[u/Nemisis_the_2nd → u/bidahtibull]

Yeah, we have had more involvement, but I think its been reasonable and proportional given the circumstances. Almost exclusively defensive with no direct involvement outside of intercepting drones and missiles. At the worst, we've allowed the US to use our bases for transiting and case-by-case strikes on Iranian launch sites.

[u/kulath123]

So low cost is about £39,000 a throw.

[u/Intergalatic_Baker → u/kulath123]

Compared to a Meteor Missile or Sidewinder of the modern day, that's well cheap.