Zaragoza-based company Instalaza has completed the functional prototype of its Alcotán MRM light anti-tank missile and begun the final testing phase. According to the company, live-fire trials have achieved consistent hits against targets at a range of 1.5 kilometers.
The next step will be to complete validation and qualification testing before moving toward potential series production. Instalaza estimates that the system will have a maximum range of between 1.5 and 2 kilometers, although it has not yet set a date for completing this phase.
Infrared and electro-optical guidance
The Alcotán MRM is designed as a lightweight, shoulder-launched anti-tank system for units requiring high tactical mobility. Its fire-and-forget architecture combines inertial guidance with an infrared and electro-optical seeker for the terminal phase.
The missile uses a direct line-of-sight architecture and allows the target to be locked before launch. This configuration is intended to reduce the operator’s exposure time after firing. Instalaza has also designed it to be compatible with future fire-control systems in the Alcotán family.
The company says it has developed the main subsystems in-house using proprietary technologies. These include the seeker, the guidance, navigation and control system, the warhead, the fuze, the two-stage propulsion system, the launch tube and the fire-control system.
Development began in 2018, when Instalaza created a unit specializing in guidance, navigation and control. According to the company, this capability was integrated with the work of its Optronics department, which has spent more than three decades developing fire-control systems.
Investment to prepare production
Instalaza has made industrial investments alongside the missile tests. The measures include a new composite propellant plant, an expansion of its optronics and electronics areas, and the addition of presses for loading warheads. The company plans to use these facilities for both the Alcotán MRM and future missile systems.
The program has received partial funding from the European Defence Fund through Sholfea and from the Ministry of Industry and Tourism. Instalaza says it has covered the remainder of the investment with its own funds.
Industrialization will depend on the missile successfully completing final validation and qualification testing. The information released by the company does not specify any potential orders from the Spanish Armed Forces.
