MBDA FLAADS(L) - Sky Sabre's Little Brother

Sebbo_the_Plebbo · February 27, 2026, 11:03pm

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MBDA FLAADS(L)

Introduction

MBDA Future Local Area Air Defence System (Land), or FLAADS(L), originates in the mid-to-late 2000s from a UK requirement to replace the increasingly obsolete Rapier Air Defence system with a more modern, networked, and longer range air defence capability. The programme was rooted in a jointly funded technology demonstration initiative between MBDA the MoD, and other industry leaders, under the wider ‘Complex Weapons’ scheme. From the outset, the concept revolved around a common missile usable across land, naval, and potentially airborne theatres, leading to the development of the Common Anti-Air Modular Missile (CAMM). Core design work began in the mid-2000s, with a soft vertical launch, active radar guided missile decided upon. The MoD approved the naval CAMM decision in April 2011, and in May 2011 a successful soft-launch firing validated the land concept, proving that CAMM could be cold-launched safely without a traditional hot-launch vertical silo.

FLAADS(L) was the earliest self-propelled launch system, beginning with a £36 million contract for a prototype awarded to MBDA in 2013. The land system uses the same sealed all-weather CAMM canister as the maritime variant, mounted on a MAN HX60 4×4 launch vehicle carrying 12 missiles. The system is radar agnostic, marketed as being able accept to any surveillance sensor for targeting, with the Saab Giraffe AMB radars is used in early graphics, alongside the older Rapier radar systems. The capabilities of CAMM, including a range exceeding 25 km, fire-and-forget active radar seeker, and 360-degree soft vertical launch, represented a hugely significant boost in air defence capabilties.

By the mid to late 2010s the UK had formally ordered the land variant, with manufacturing contracts following and entry to service projected for 2020 and beyond. International interest quickly followed, with CAMM-based systems selected for export customers, including Poland, and the missile gained further credibility through compatibility demonstrations with Mk 41 and SYLVER launchers. The ultimate UK-adopted system was an evolution of FLAADS(L) - Sky Sabre, featuring a larger 8x8 launch platform, a reduction of missiles from 12 to 8, but gaining the capability to launch the more advanced and longer range variant of CAMM, CAMM-ER.

Place In-Game

In-game, the FLAADS(L) system would need to utilise the multi-vehicle mechanic, as the launcher has no independent targeting capabilities and relies on datalink with external surveillance sensors. For full clarity, in the demonstration video for FLAADS(L), it utilised the towed Rapier radar, but with towed vehicles not being acceptable for suggestions, I am suggesting the system with the Giraffe AMB radar system from Saab. Britain operated these radars leased from Sweden from 2007, purchasing them in in larger numbers from 2014 onwards explicitly to use alongside FLAADS (see sources below). Graphics published by MBDA alongside the FLAADS system also show it utilising the SAAB Giraffe AMB radar for guidance, so it is a perfectly feasible option for the multi-vehicle mechanic.

In terms of capabilities and BR, the system would lack CAMM-ER as it considerable predates it, and would not have been built to stow and fire the larger launch tubes of the longer range missile. This places it definitively below Sky Sabre, so it could therefore be placed around 12.3. While this may seem like a slightly pointless downgrade, it would actually now be a useful addition, as top-tier vehicles at 12.7 are excluded from the new free SPAA mechanic, whereas 12.3 vehicles and below are not excluded. Meaning, if you were playing top tier Britain and didn’t have the Sky Sabre, you’d be guaranteed to get a free FLAADS(L), instead of the ADATS that you get currently. These free vehicles are widely utilised, as seen by the massive increase in SPAA vehicles played recently, so filling out the SPAA lines in the trees is now even more important, in my opinion.

Specifications

Spoiler

Missile - CAMM (No capabilities for CAMM-ER)