Exclusive: KNDS-France Unveils Land-Deployable Short-Range Air Defense Concept with 40mm Rapidfire gun.

KNDS-France, a leading defense company, has introduced an innovative concept for land-based short-range air defense, designed to protect military bases and critical infrastructure from emerging airborne threats. This cutting-edge system features an 8x8 Tatra truck chassis integrated with a deployable shelter, housing the powerful 40mm Rapidfire anti-aircraft gun system. The highly mobile platform is engineered to deliver fast, adaptable air defense capabilities, making it a strong contender in the battle against modern aerial threats, including drones and loitering munitions. A scale model of the new air defense system was displayed during IDEX 2025, an international defense exhibition in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
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Scale model of KNDS-France's land-deployable 40mm Rapidfire air defense system, unveiled at IEX 2025. (Picture source: Army Recognition Group)

The decision to integrate the 40mm Rapidfire anti-aircraft system onto a deployable shelter mounted on the 8x8 Tatra truck chassis is a significant advancement in modern air defense capabilities. This mobile and flexible approach offers multiple strategic advantages, particularly in the context of rapidly evolving warfare and the growing threat from small, agile, and low-flying aerial targets such as drones and loitering munitions.

By placing the Rapidfire 40mm system on a deployable shelter, KNDS-France has created a solution that combines mobility with the speed of rapid deployment, ensuring air defense can be provided wherever it is needed most. The system can be quickly repositioned to protect high-value assets, military bases, and convoys, offering critical flexibility in dynamic, hostile environments. The deployable shelter also ensures the system can be protected and operational in minutes, minimizing setup times and maximizing readiness.

This deployable shelter concept not only enhances operational efficiency but also provides a practical solution for forces operating in challenging terrains where traditional, larger air defense systems may not be easily deployable. The shelter’s compact nature, combined with the robust chassis of the Tatra 8x8, allows for protection in diverse environments, ranging from urban areas to remote battlefield locations. This combination of mobility, rapid deployment, and effective protection makes the 40mm Rapidfire on a deployable shelter an invaluable asset in modern defense operations.

At the core of this new air defense solution is the 40mm Rapidfire gun system. Mounted on the durable 8x8 Tatra truck chassis, the system offers a high degree of mobility, allowing it to operate across different terrains, whether on or off-road. This mobility ensures that the system can be quickly relocated and deployed wherever air defense is needed, providing a strategic advantage in protecting assets in a variety of operational environments. Once the system reaches its designated location, the shelter can be deployed, housing the 40mm Rapidfire gun system. The weapon is designed for rapid engagement of airborne threats, including conventional aircraft, missiles, and more modern, smaller threats such as drones and loitering munitions. These modern threats have become increasingly difficult to intercept with traditional systems due to their small size, speed, and unpredictable flight paths.

The 40mm Rapidfire system utilizes advanced sensors and fire control systems that allow it to track and engage fast-moving targets effectively. The weapon's high rate of fire ensures it can engage multiple threats at once, making it particularly effective against swarms of small drones or fast-moving munitions. The system's ability to quickly engage and neutralize a variety of aerial threats in a short amount of time makes it a critical asset for modern military forces that face an evolving range of air threats. The mobility of the Tatra 8x8 truck chassis adds to the system’s versatility, as it can be easily moved to different locations, ensuring that air defense can be provided wherever it is needed most.

A key feature of the 40mm Rapidfire system is its use of 40mm airburst ammunition, a specialized type of ammunition designed to counter emerging threats such as drones and loitering munitions effectively. Unlike traditional projectiles, airburst ammunition detonates in mid-air at a predetermined distance from the target, releasing a burst of shrapnel to destroy or disable the target. This makes it highly effective against smaller, faster, and more maneuverable threats, such as drones, which are often too small to be effectively intercepted by conventional weapons. The ability to create a lethal radius around a target, even if the projectile does not hit it directly, ensures that the threat can be neutralized before it reaches its intended target.

The 40mm airburst ammunition is particularly valuable when engaging low-flying, small targets that are often hard to intercept with traditional air defense systems. Drones and loitering munitions typically fly at low altitudes and high speeds, which makes them challenging to intercept using conventional weaponry. However, with airburst rounds, the 40mm Rapidfire system can detonate the rounds at the optimal moment, creating a "kill zone" around the target. This ensures that the system can neutralize a variety of aerial threats, including both individual drones and swarms, before they can cause harm.

The versatility of 40mm airburst ammunition extends beyond drones and loitering munitions. It is also effective against other low-flying airborne threats, such as missiles or aircraft flying at lower altitudes. The system’s ability to deliver rapid, sustained fire against these targets ensures that it can effectively address a wide range of airborne threats, from small UAVs to larger conventional aircraft. This makes the 40mm Rapidfire system a highly adaptable solution for air defense, as it can handle a variety of scenarios that modern forces face on the battlefield.

The 40mm Rapidfire system also provides a cost-effective solution to modern air defense needs. The proliferation of small, cheap drones and loitering munitions has changed the nature of air defense, as traditional, larger, and more expensive systems may not be as effective or economical against these types of threats. The 40mm Rapidfire system offers a more affordable and efficient means of defending against such low-cost aerial threats, while still delivering high-performance capabilities. Its ability to rapidly engage and neutralize multiple targets makes it an essential tool for protecting military assets in environments where traditional defense systems may struggle.

The 40mm Rapidfire system faces competition from other advanced air defense solutions, such as the Skynex system developed by Germany’s Rheinmetall. Like the 40mm Rapidfire, the Skynex system is designed to counter low-altitude threats like drones and loitering munitions using radar and sensor-guided technologies. However, the 40mm Rapidfire system differentiates itself by combining the flexibility of a mobile platform with the precise, high rate of fire offered by the 40mm gun. The use of 40mm airburst ammunition also provides a distinct advantage, especially in environments where multiple small, fast-moving threats need to be neutralized quickly.

The introduction of this mobile 40mm Rapidfire system is particularly timely, as the use of drones and loitering munitions in modern warfare has been on the rise. These smaller, agile, and inexpensive threats have posed significant challenges for traditional air defense systems, making them less effective in dealing with the evolving aerial landscape. The 40mm airburst ammunition and the system's rapid-deployment features offer an effective, low-cost solution for countering these new threats, ensuring that military forces can protect their assets without relying on more expensive, complex systems.

With the increasing use of drones and loitering munitions on the modern battlefield, systems like the 40mm Rapidfire will play a crucial role in air defense. The combination of mobility, rapid deployment, and airburst ammunition ensures that this system is well-suited to counter the evolving threats posed by smaller, faster, and more maneuverable aerial objects. As the nature of warfare continues to change, the 40mm Rapidfire system will remain a key asset in securing airspace and defending military personnel and infrastructure from emerging threats.

Integrating the Rapidfire 40mm system onto a deployable shelter represents a crucial step forward in developing flexible, quick-response air defense systems. It offers a powerful and cost-effective solution to meet the challenges posed by modern aerial threats while ensuring that military forces are always ready to respond, wherever and whenever the need arises.