MX-10 Damocles: KNDS supplies loitering munitions to France

KNDS France has delivered the first of its MX-10 Damocles loitering munitions to the French DGA after a short development sprint. 

BLUF: 

• MX-10 Damocles is a rotary wing loitering munition developed by KNDS France and Delair. 
• It has been qualified and supplied to the French armed forces under a programme called Remotely Operated Munition – Short Range (MTO CP).

The French armed forces have qualified and accepted delivery of the first MX-10 Damocles loitering munitions from KNDS France and partner Delair, according to a January 23 press release. The munition was developed in just over a year, with the contract placed in Summer 2024 and delivery in December 2025, the press release states. 

Qualification included ten test strikes, which were all successful according to KNDS. Those live fire tests followed “several hundred blank tests carried out over the preceding months which enabled this level of performance to be achieved,” the press release adds. 

The munition has been developed under a project called Remotely Operated Munition – Short Range (MTO CP) for the French armed forces, which was developed following an initiative known as Colibri that was launched in 2022 to provide domestically produced loitering munitions to the French forces. 

It is understood that the French Procurement Agency (DGA), has already ordered 460 of the MX-10 Damocles under a total framework for 2,270, which was signed in July 2024. Presumably initiating the development process. Delivery of the first munitions is expected to be complete by July 2026.

Tech profile: MX-10 Damocles

The MX-10 Damocles is based on a quadcopter design from Delair that is paired with a 550 g incendiary fragmentation warhead from KNDS France. It is firmly intended, like most loitering munitions in its class, to engage light vehicles and personnel in the open. Fragmentation is a really important element of any munition designed for those targets. Explosive force can kill and maim, but its energy dissipates quite quickly. This means that unless it is very close to the target, it will not be effective. Maximising and optimising the fragmentation pattern can ensure that more infantry are wounded or killed per munition. 

The electric-powered system weighs 3.5 kg and features a wingspan of 80 cm. It is designed for rapid deployment in under five minutes, offering a maximum operational range of 10 km and a flight endurance of 40 minutes. The system utilizes a jam-resistant data link to provide real-time video feedback until the moment of impact and is capable of navigating in GNSS-denied environments. Notably, the MX-10 includes the ability to abort a strike if a mission is cancelled, allowing the craft to return to a loitering mode before re-engaging targets at a more suitable time.

Calibre comment: The FPV effect

As mentioned before on this site, loitering munitions are far from new. Especially those designed to take out personnel and point targets, which were deployed in Afghanistan from 2012. France appears to have missed that technological development despite maintaining a long-term counter-insurgency campaign in Mali. However, Ukraine has arguably created an “FPV effect,” leading to a significant and widespread uptake of drones and strike munitions. Despite tens of thousands of casualties being caused by artillery and airstrikes, the most conventional of defence capabilities, the use of FPVs has captured significant levels of attention and driven adaptation within many armed forces. 

• Organic Precision Fires-Light: USMC orders Bolt-M – Calibre Defence
• Sweden tests Ukrainian drones in bid to learn Russian tactics – Calibre Defence
• Calibre interview: Kara Dag Technologies unpacks the drone war in Ukraine

There remains some risk within this space, which is the pace of adaptation. Russian electronic warfare is extremely capable and poses many challenges to the use of small munitions like the MX-10 Damocles. Ukrainian units regularly have to update their operating frequencies to evade jamming and ensure that they can operate. For this reason, they commit to a design ethos, rather than specific designs, which means they can adapt and modify their FPVs as new threats develop. Committing to one type could limit the ability of an armed force to respond to changes in environment unless that design is software defined. 

By Sam Cranny-Evans, published on January 26, 2026. The lead image shows the MX-10 Damocles from KNDS France and Delair. Credit: KNDS France.