MX-10 DAMOCLES

MX-10 DAMOCLES is a quadcopter loitering munition developed by KNDS France with the drone maker Delair, part of the MATARIS family and in service with French and Ukrainian forces.

Overview

KNDS France unveiled the MX-10 at the IDEX 2025 defence exhibition in Abu Dhabi in February 2025 as a new member of its then newly branded MATARIS loitering-munition range. The system was developed under France's short-range remotely operated munition (LMS) programme, with Delair assembling the quadcopter airframe and KNDS Ammo France supplying the warhead; Delair's involvement traces to a French government innovation programme that originally funded the airframe in 2022. KNDS has since marketed the aircraft as MX-10 DAMOCLES.

By the time of the IDEX announcement, KNDS told Janes that roughly 100 MX-10 units had already been supplied to the Armed Forces of Ukraine since the start of 2025, alongside undisclosed numbers delivered to French forces. KNDS's own June 2026 Eurosatory release states the type has been in active service with the French Army since December 2025, and in October 2026 the French defence procurement agency (DGA) exercised a contract option for additional units, following an initial July 2024 order, to expand supply to the French Army and Navy; neither the cost nor the quantity of the October 2026 order was disclosed.

Design and capabilities

KNDS's product specification lists the MX-10 at 3.5 kg with an 80 cm span, built as a quadcopter with electric propulsion and vertical take-off and landing, requiring no launch infrastructure. It carries a 550-gram explosive-incendiary fragmentation warhead, point-detonating, intended against personnel and lightly protected vehicles. KNDS states a maximum range of 10 km and an endurance of about 40 minutes, with deployment possible in under five minutes. The aircraft uses a jam-resistant data link for beyond-line-of-sight control, streams real-time video to the operator up to the point of impact, and is designed to navigate where GNSS signals are denied or degraded. A safety and arming device lets the operator abort an attack and return the aircraft to loitering flight before a strike is re-attempted.

Operational history

KNDS and Janes have both described the MX-10 as in production and supplied to French forces since its 2025 introduction, with about 100 units delivered to Ukraine's armed forces by early 2025 and further units delivered to France's Joint Munitions Service. KNDS states the type entered active French Army service in December 2025, and the DGA's October 2026 option exercise extends the existing framework agreement to equip the French Army and Navy. The MX-10 was also shown publicly at the BEDEX 2026 defence exhibition in Belgium.

Variants

MX-10 DAMOCLES is the quadcopter member of KNDS France's MATARIS range, alongside the coaxial-rotor MT-10 and the fixed-wing MV-25 OSKAR and MV-100 VELOCE 330, neither of which has a page on this site.

Frequently asked questions

What is the range of the MX-10 DAMOCLES?

KNDS's product specification lists a maximum range of 10 km.

How long can the MX-10 DAMOCLES fly?

KNDS and Janes both give an endurance of about 40 minutes.

How much does the MX-10 DAMOCLES weigh?

KNDS lists an all-up weight of 3.5 kg, with an 80 cm span.

Who operates the MX-10 DAMOCLES?

France's Army and Navy, and Ukraine's armed forces; Janes reported about 100 units delivered to Ukraine by early 2025, and KNDS states French Army service began in December 2025.

Who makes the MX-10 DAMOCLES?

KNDS France, developed with the drone maker Delair, which assembles the airframe, and KNDS Ammo France, which supplies the warhead.