The Eurosam consortium announced on 11 June 2026 that France has ordered the multi-layered version of the SAMP/T NG air and missile defence system.

The contract was actually awarded on 30 April 2026 by the Organisation for Joint Armament Cooperation (OCCAR) on behalf of France.

The contract aims to afford the SAMP/T NG French variant a short-range surface-to-air missile capability with MICA VL missiles (in both their infra-red and radar-guided versions), complementing its medium- to long-range air and ballistic missile defence capability with MBDA ASTER missiles.

The new capability will require an upgrade to the Next Generation Engagement Module (ME-NG) of the SAMP/T NG system. The ME-NG will thus ensure co-ordinated fire with optimised use of launchers loaded with these effectors in an operational context where the number and diversity of aerial threats are increasingly significant.

Under the frame of this new contract the SAMP/T NG sections planned in the current French 2024-2030 Military Programming Law will be delivered to the French Air and Space Force in this multilayer ASTER/VL MICA configuration.

This new SAMP/T NG version is designed to be scalable, with the aim of broadening its multi-layered capability by integrating also very-short-range missile effectors (such as the Mistral 3) and anti-drone systems. This will contribute to building a broader and fully integrated air and missile defence capability, reinforcing the ability of SAMP/T NG to counter all types of threats in the decades to come.

Eurosam is owned equally between MBDA France, MBDA Italy and Thales.