Germany Expands Meteor Missile Stocks to Boost Eurofighter’s Beyond-Visual-Range Combat Capability
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MBDA confirmed that Germany signed a new contract for additional Meteor beyond visual range air-to-air missiles for the Bundeswehr. The purchase strengthens the Luftwaffe’s ability to deter and, if required, dominate long-range air engagements without closing into an adversary’s preferred fight.
On 21 January 2026, MBDA announced that Germany had signed a new contract for additional Meteor beyond visual range air-to-air missiles for the Bundeswehr. The order comes as European air forces increasingly prioritise stock depth for high-end air policing and deterrence missions that can escalate rapidly from routine patrols to contested intercepts. For the German Air Force (Luftwaffe), Meteor represents not merely a weapon procurement but a critical enabler of long-range engagement options on the Eurofighter, shaping how German fighters can deny airspace without closing into an adversary’s preferred engagement envelope.
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Germany has quietly expanded its air combat edge by ordering additional Meteor beyond visual range missiles, reinforcing the Luftwaffe’s ability to deter and control contested airspace at long range (Picture Source: MBDA)
According to MBDA, the contract was awarded via the Meteor Integrated Joint Programme Office on behalf of Germany’s BAAINBw, following earlier German orders. While neither the quantity nor the contract value has been disclosed, the procurement pathway clearly signals a continuation of stock replenishment and sustainment for a missile that Germany helped develop and now fields as a core air-to-air capability within NATO.
Meteor is built around a solid-fuel, variable-flow ducted rocket motor produced in Germany by MBDA subsidiary Bayern Chemie, which the manufacturer describes as providing sustained thrust throughout the engagement up to intercept. This continuous energy delivery is central to the missile’s so-called “No Escape Zone”, the phase of an engagement in which a target’s manoeuvre and acceleration options are most constrained, particularly in the terminal phase when many conventional rocket-powered missiles have already expended their boost and are losing speed.
The missile’s continued relevance also lies in how it is employed in modern, information-dense air combat. MBDA characterises Meteor as a network-enabled capability supported by a two-way weapons data link, enabling in-flight target updates and reducing the need for the launching aircraft to commit to a long, predictable pursuit. When combined with fifth-generation sensors or cooperative targeting from other platforms, this approach aligns with a tactical environment in which electronic warfare, decoys, and rapid manoeuvre are the norm rather than the exception.
For Germany, the operational centre of gravity for Meteor remains the Eurofighter Typhoon fleet. The Luftwaffe conducted key flight activities with Meteor as early as 2021, describing initial Eurofighter carriage trials at Neuburg as a milestone on the path to operational readiness. In December 2024, the Bundeswehr reported the first Meteor firing from a German Eurofighter during a test campaign at RAF Lossiemouth, presenting the event as a concrete step in expanding the aircraft’s long-range air-to-air portfolio. In parallel, Germany’s defence ministry has consistently framed Meteor as a cornerstone of the Eurofighter’s beyond visual range armament, while pointing to ongoing efforts to preserve the missile’s operational relevance over the coming decades.
Additional Meteor stocks enhance Germany’s ability to contest airspace at extended distances and to impose risk on hostile aircraft before they reach their own weapon release lines. The combination of sustained end-game energy and networked employment supports a core air defence challenge faced by Germany in a NATO context: intercepting fast-moving targets under time pressure while minimising exposure to layered surface-to-air defences and electronic attack. In this sense, Meteor is less about a single advertised maximum range and more about preserving credible engagement options across a wide range of geometries and threat reactions.
The new order reinforces two parallel messages. First, it underlines Germany’s commitment to a European cooperative missile enterprise involving six partner nations, keeping propulsion technologies and key know-how within Europe while sustaining a common capability among allied air forces. Second, it aligns German Eurofighter readiness with a programme that MBDA says is steadily expanding its footprint onto fifth-generation aircraft. Meteor has already flown on the F-35B, and MBDA reports that ground vibration testing and fit checks have been conducted at Edwards Air Force Base ahead of F-35A flight testing, with the United Kingdom leading the F-35B integration track and Italy sponsoring the F-35A effort. In parallel, Saab’s account of Brazil’s November 2025 firings from the Gripen E illustrates how Meteor’s operational ecosystem continues to expand among users and partners, reinforcing industrial momentum and interoperability.
Germany’s latest Meteor order, disclosed by MBDA on 21 January 2026, is therefore best understood as a readiness decision with broader signalling value. It sustains a proven Eurofighter air defence capability while reinforcing a European industrial and operational framework for high-end air-to-air combat. In an environment where air superiority is increasingly determined by who can detect, decide, and engage first at distance, maintaining deep stocks of a network-enabled, sustained-energy BVRAAM represents a direct investment in deterrence credibility rather than a routine resupply decision.
Written by Teoman S. Nicanci – Defense Analyst, Army Recognition Group
Teoman S. Nicanci holds degrees in Political Science, Comparative and International Politics, and International Relations and Diplomacy from leading Belgian universities, with research focused on Russian strategic behavior, defense technology, and modern warfare. He is a defense analyst at Army Recognition, specializing in the global defense industry, military armament, and emerging defense technologies.
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MBDA confirmed that Germany signed a new contract for additional Meteor beyond visual range air-to-air missiles for the Bundeswehr. The purchase strengthens the Luftwaffe’s ability to deter and, if required, dominate long-range air engagements without closing into an adversary’s preferred fight.
On 21 January 2026, MBDA announced that Germany had signed a new contract for additional Meteor beyond visual range air-to-air missiles for the Bundeswehr. The order comes as European air forces increasingly prioritise stock depth for high-end air policing and deterrence missions that can escalate rapidly from routine patrols to contested intercepts. For the German Air Force (Luftwaffe), Meteor represents not merely a weapon procurement but a critical enabler of long-range engagement options on the Eurofighter, shaping how German fighters can deny airspace without closing into an adversary’s preferred engagement envelope.
Germany has quietly expanded its air combat edge by ordering additional Meteor beyond visual range missiles, reinforcing the Luftwaffe’s ability to deter and control contested airspace at long range (Picture Source: MBDA)
According to MBDA, the contract was awarded via the Meteor Integrated Joint Programme Office on behalf of Germany’s BAAINBw, following earlier German orders. While neither the quantity nor the contract value has been disclosed, the procurement pathway clearly signals a continuation of stock replenishment and sustainment for a missile that Germany helped develop and now fields as a core air-to-air capability within NATO.
Meteor is built around a solid-fuel, variable-flow ducted rocket motor produced in Germany by MBDA subsidiary Bayern Chemie, which the manufacturer describes as providing sustained thrust throughout the engagement up to intercept. This continuous energy delivery is central to the missile’s so-called “No Escape Zone”, the phase of an engagement in which a target’s manoeuvre and acceleration options are most constrained, particularly in the terminal phase when many conventional rocket-powered missiles have already expended their boost and are losing speed.
The missile’s continued relevance also lies in how it is employed in modern, information-dense air combat. MBDA characterises Meteor as a network-enabled capability supported by a two-way weapons data link, enabling in-flight target updates and reducing the need for the launching aircraft to commit to a long, predictable pursuit. When combined with fifth-generation sensors or cooperative targeting from other platforms, this approach aligns with a tactical environment in which electronic warfare, decoys, and rapid manoeuvre are the norm rather than the exception.
For Germany, the operational centre of gravity for Meteor remains the Eurofighter Typhoon fleet. The Luftwaffe conducted key flight activities with Meteor as early as 2021, describing initial Eurofighter carriage trials at Neuburg as a milestone on the path to operational readiness. In December 2024, the Bundeswehr reported the first Meteor firing from a German Eurofighter during a test campaign at RAF Lossiemouth, presenting the event as a concrete step in expanding the aircraft’s long-range air-to-air portfolio. In parallel, Germany’s defence ministry has consistently framed Meteor as a cornerstone of the Eurofighter’s beyond visual range armament, while pointing to ongoing efforts to preserve the missile’s operational relevance over the coming decades.
Additional Meteor stocks enhance Germany’s ability to contest airspace at extended distances and to impose risk on hostile aircraft before they reach their own weapon release lines. The combination of sustained end-game energy and networked employment supports a core air defence challenge faced by Germany in a NATO context: intercepting fast-moving targets under time pressure while minimising exposure to layered surface-to-air defences and electronic attack. In this sense, Meteor is less about a single advertised maximum range and more about preserving credible engagement options across a wide range of geometries and threat reactions.
The new order reinforces two parallel messages. First, it underlines Germany’s commitment to a European cooperative missile enterprise involving six partner nations, keeping propulsion technologies and key know-how within Europe while sustaining a common capability among allied air forces. Second, it aligns German Eurofighter readiness with a programme that MBDA says is steadily expanding its footprint onto fifth-generation aircraft. Meteor has already flown on the F-35B, and MBDA reports that ground vibration testing and fit checks have been conducted at Edwards Air Force Base ahead of F-35A flight testing, with the United Kingdom leading the F-35B integration track and Italy sponsoring the F-35A effort. In parallel, Saab’s account of Brazil’s November 2025 firings from the Gripen E illustrates how Meteor’s operational ecosystem continues to expand among users and partners, reinforcing industrial momentum and interoperability.
Germany’s latest Meteor order, disclosed by MBDA on 21 January 2026, is therefore best understood as a readiness decision with broader signalling value. It sustains a proven Eurofighter air defence capability while reinforcing a European industrial and operational framework for high-end air-to-air combat. In an environment where air superiority is increasingly determined by who can detect, decide, and engage first at distance, maintaining deep stocks of a network-enabled, sustained-energy BVRAAM represents a direct investment in deterrence credibility rather than a routine resupply decision.
Written by Teoman S. Nicanci – Defense Analyst, Army Recognition Group
Teoman S. Nicanci holds degrees in Political Science, Comparative and International Politics, and International Relations and Diplomacy from leading Belgian universities, with research focused on Russian strategic behavior, defense technology, and modern warfare. He is a defense analyst at Army Recognition, specializing in the global defense industry, military armament, and emerging defense technologies.
