Thales X-Fire Conducted Its First Shots: France’s 150+ km Sovereign Land Attack Launcher
Thales has conducted the first firings of the X-Fire multiple launch system, which will form the backbone of France’s next-generation long-range land strike capability. The system, integrated into an 8×8 high-mobility platform, emphasizes a range of 150 km and beyond.
According to a news report by Defence Industry Europe dated May 26, 2026, the first live firings of the X-Fire launcher took place on May 20, 2026. During the test firings, a 68 mm X-Fum training rocket was used, while the final munition is expected to be the FLP-t 150 ballistic munition, developed by France as a “sovereign” solution, ready before the end of the decade.
System Profile: Agile 8×8 Chassis, GNSS Resistance, Multi-Caliber Launcher
X-Fire is mounted on an 8×8 mobile platform designed to operate in harmony with the French army’s existing logistics fleet. According to data shared by the company, the launcher is equipped with the TopStar Smart GNSS receiver and the TopAxyz inertial measurement unit, both designed to operate in heavily jammed electromagnetic environments. This architecture supports the claim of maintaining strike accuracy even under GPS jamming and deception.
Thales Vice President Assoun stated, “The versatility of X-Fire allows us to meet the need for sovereign ballistic munitions (FLP-t 150) by the end of the decade while maintaining operational continuity.” It was emphasized that production preparations are in the ramp-up phase.
Multilayered Artillery Race in Europe
The emergence of X-Fire reflects the intense competition in Europe regarding long-range artillery and tactical ballistic launchers. The KNDS PULS, a collaboration between Germany and Israel, Lockheed Martin’s M270 and HIMARS families, and systems developed through the cooperation of Rheinmetall and Elbit are competing around multiple NATO orders. France’s emphasis on X-Fire with its “sovereignty” narrative is a concrete indication of Paris’s intention to reduce its supply dependency in this market.
Turkey Perspective: KASIRGA, TRG-300/TIGER, and TRLG Axis
From the perspective of the Turkish defense industry, X-Fire should be viewed as a competitor positioned in the same range as Roketsan’s KASIRGA-150 / KASIRGA-300 families and TRG-300 TIGER. Roketsan’s existing production of GPS/INS guided munitions with a range of 150 km already highlights potential competitive areas in the export market. In addition to existing Turkish customers such as Bahrain, Azerbaijan, and Bangladesh, the timeline for X-Fire’s domestic placement in France will be decisive in shaping new orders within Europe.
Next Steps
While the company did not provide a specific date, it is anticipated that the FLP-t 150 munitions will enter the inventory before the end of the decade. This indicates that X-Fire could be delivered to the first operational units between 2028 and 2030.
References
- Defence Industry Europe — “Thales completes first X-Fire launcher firings for long-range land strike capability”, May 26, 2026
- Thales Group — TopStar Smart GNSS / TopAxyz IMU technical data sheets
- Open source European artillery modernization analyses (comparisons of HIMARS, PULS, MARS II)
- Roketsan open product catalog
