Rheinmetall and Destinus establish joint venture for missile systems

Missile production Rheinmetall and Destinus Establish Joint Venture for Missile Systems

2026-04-17 Source: Rheinmetall AG | Translated by AI 3 min Reading Time

Related Vendors

Rheinmetall and Destinus are joining forces to industrialise scalable missile systems for Europe’s evolving defence requirements.

The planned joint venture aims to scale up industrial production of advanced cruise missile systems for European and allied forces.(Source: Rheinmetall AG) — The planned joint venture aims to scale up industrial production of advanced cruise missile systems for European and allied forces.
(Source: Rheinmetall AG)

The german technology group Rheinmetall and the European defence company Destinus, headquartered in the Netherlands and focused on scalable strike and interception systems, have agreed to establish a joint venture. The goal of both partners is to found the joint venture “Rheinmetall Destinus Strike Systems” in the second half of 2026. It will manufacture, market and deliver advanced missile systems. These include cruise missiles and ballistic rocket artillery. Rheinmetall will hold 51 percent of the shares, Destinus 49 percent. The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals.

As part of the partnership, Rheinmetall and Destinus intend to leverage market opportunities and further develop modern missile systems. In agreed markets and subject to the necessary approvals, they aim to offer innovative solutions for cruise missiles and ballistic rocket artillery and to strengthen existing product portfolios.

Destinus will retain its headquarters in the Netherlands and will continue to develop and manufacture core systems and components at its Dutch and other European facilities. The joint venture will expand qualification and serial production capacities at Rheinmetall’s German industrial sites.

Armin Papperger, CEO of Rheinmetall, said: “We must expand the industrial base for modern defence systems in Europe. This joint venture reflects that necessity. We are combining Rheinmetall’s production capacities and experience in managing large-scale programmes with Destinus’ specialised technology and system design. In doing so, we are laying the foundation for scalable, operational missiles tailored to the current requirements of European and allied armed forces.”

“Europe is entering a new phase of scaling missile production,” added Mikhail Kokorich, co-founder and CEO of Destinus. “Modern conflicts are defined by volume and cost per effect. Missile systems are evolving from systems produced in limited quantities into industrial products. The real constraint in Europe today is not demand, but industrial capacity.”

Recent conflicts, including in Ukraine and the Middle East, have shown that demand for scalable strike systems is no longer measured in limited quantities. Instead, thousands of systems per year are increasingly required, potentially tens of thousands over time, provided procurement in Europe and among allies adapts accordingly. This represents a short-term market opportunity in the range of hundreds of millions of euros and long-term potential in the low single-digit billions.

The partnership combines Destinus’ combat-proven system architecture, product design and development of scalable platforms, including systems already proven in Ukraine, with Rheinmetall’s industrial scale, qualification capabilities and manufacturing expertise as a leading German defence company. Destinus develops and manufactures cruise missile systems and turbojet engines and operates an established serial production programme in Europe, currently producing more than 2,000 cruise missile systems per year. Rheinmetall contributes its extensive experience in the development and production of complex defence systems, its industrial presence in Germany and significant ongoing investments in independent, scalable defence production. Together, the partners will create industrial capacities for serial production and qualification in Germany, thereby supporting European sovereignty objectives and the requirements of the NATO alliance.

The joint venture will focus on the manufacturing, assembly, testing and delivery of advanced cruise missile systems. In doing so, it will help accelerate the deployment of a purpose-built missile system and meet the requirements of national and international customers.

The company will address a broad international market in Europe as well as selected partner countries within the NATO alliance. For specific key markets, the involvement of local industrial partners may be considered. Both companies will contribute their regional expertise and market knowledge to define appropriate distribution structures and drive sustainable growth in relevant market segments.

Subscribe to the newsletter now

Don't Miss out on Our Best Content

Business E-mail

Please enter a valid mailadress.

By clicking on „Subscribe to Newsletter“ I agree to the processing and use of my data according to the consent form (please expand for details) and accept the Terms of Use. For more information, please see our Privacy Policy. The consent declaration relates, among other things, to the sending of editorial newsletters by email and to data matching for marketing purposes with selected advertising partners (e.g., LinkedIn, Google, Meta)

Date: 08.12.2025

Naturally, we always handle your personal data responsibly. Any personal data we receive from you is processed in accordance with applicable data protection legislation. For detailed information please see our privacy policy.

Consent to the use of data for promotional purposes

I hereby consent to Vogel Communications Group GmbH & Co. KG, Max-Planck-Str. 7-9, 97082 Würzburg including any affiliated companies according to §§ 15 et seq. AktG (hereafter: Vogel Communications Group) using my e-mail address to send editorial newsletters. A list of all affiliated companies can be found here

Newsletter content may include all products and services of any companies mentioned above, including for example specialist journals and books, events and fairs as well as event-related products and services, print and digital media offers and services such as additional (editorial) newsletters, raffles, lead campaigns, market research both online and offline, specialist webportals and e-learning offers. In case my personal telephone number has also been collected, it may be used for offers of aforementioned products, for services of the companies mentioned above, and market research purposes.

Additionally, my consent also includes the processing of my email address and telephone number for data matching for marketing purposes with select advertising partners such as LinkedIn, Google, and Meta. For this, Vogel Communications Group may transmit said data in hashed form to the advertising partners who then use said data to determine whether I am also a member of the mentioned advertising partner portals. Vogel Communications Group uses this feature for the purposes of re-targeting (up-selling, cross-selling, and customer loyalty), generating so-called look-alike audiences for acquisition of new customers, and as basis for exclusion for on-going advertising campaigns. Further information can be found in section “data matching for marketing purposes”.

In case I access protected data on Internet portals of Vogel Communications Group including any affiliated companies according to §§ 15 et seq. AktG, I need to provide further data in order to register for the access to such content. In return for this free access to editorial content, my data may be used in accordance with this consent for the purposes stated here. This does not apply to data matching for marketing purposes.

Right of revocation

I understand that I can revoke my consent at will. My revocation does not change the lawfulness of data processing that was conducted based on my consent leading up to my revocation. One option to declare my revocation is to use the contact form found at https://contact.vogel.de. In case I no longer wish to receive certain newsletters, I have subscribed to, I can also click on the unsubscribe link included at the end of a newsletter. Further information regarding my right of revocation and the implementation of it as well as the consequences of my revocation can be found in the data protection declaration, section editorial newsletter.

This initiative reflects a broader shift in modern warfare: long-range strike capabilities are evolving from predominantly drone-based approaches towards faster, more resilient and industrially scalable cruise missile systems. With this joint venture, Rheinmetall and Destinus aim to close the gap between Europe’s and Ukraine’s requirements and the capabilities of the European defence industry at scale and at industrial speed.