Naval Group's Rampart Counter-Drone Launcher Fitted to French Mistral-Class Ship Ahead of Sea Trials

Naval Group's new Rampart modular close-in weapon system has gone to sea: the launcher was spotted mounted aboard a French Navy Mistral-class amphibious assault ship at Toulon, France, according to reports published on September 22, 2026 by The War Zone and Naval News.

The installation precedes the system's first at-sea firing campaign, which the reports say is scheduled for October 2026 during the French Navy's counter-drone exercise WildFire. No firing from the ship has been reported yet; the October campaign is described by the outlets as the first time the launcher will be fired at sea.

Rampart, previously designated MPLS, is a turret launcher carrying four interchangeable launch modules, according to The War Zone. In one configuration each module holds 20 68mm laser-guided rockets, so a fully loaded launcher can carry up to 80 rockets, Naval News reports. The modules can be mixed to load different munitions or decoys depending on the threat, whether aerial drones, uncrewed surface vessels or fast attack craft, according to Army Recognition. The 80-rocket figure applies to a launcher loaded entirely with the 68mm rocket module; a mixed load would carry fewer rockets alongside whatever the other modules hold.

The system is intended for close-in point defense against drone-saturation and swarm attacks, the reports state. Baird Maritime and The War Zone describe it as a direct response to the naval drone threat profile observed in the Black Sea and the Red Sea over the past two years. The reports do not detail specific incidents from either theater as design drivers, and they do not name a launch customer or an order beyond the French Navy trial.

The reports do not give a unit cost for the rockets or the launcher, and they do not state whether the installation on the ship at Toulon is permanent, whether Rampart is intended for the Mistral-class beyond the trials, or which other French ship types could receive the system if it is adopted.

Naval Group is also marketing a land-based version of the same system under the Rampart name, designated LMP, for counter-drone defense of ground installations, according to Army Recognition. The naval variant is the one now being trialed; the land version is not reported to be part of the October campaign.

WildFire is the French Navy's counter-drone exercise, and the October edition will host the first at-sea firing of Rampart, according to the reports. The results of that campaign, and any subsequent procurement decision by the French Navy, had not been announced at the time of writing.