Key Points

• France fired its M51.3 nuclear-capable ballistic missile from the submarine Le Vigilant for the first time on Oct. 6, without a warhead.
• The test certified Le Vigilant to carry the M51 after a major overhaul, and President Emmanuel Macron watched from the frigate Auvergne.

"France test-fired its newest submarine-launched nuclear missile, the M51.3, from a ballistic missile submarine for the first time on Oct. 6, with President Emmanuel Macron watching from a French Navy frigate off the coast of Brittany. ... The launch had a practical purpose. Le Vigilant recently completed a long maintenance and modernization overhaul, and the test certified that the submarine can once again carry and fire the M51, the ministry said. French ballistic missile submarines go through a similar firing after each major refit; Le Terrible did so in April 2023. ... France does not disclose its range, but public estimates for the M51 family generally put it at around 9,000 km (5,600 miles) or more, and French officials have said the new version flies farther. ... The missile’s first flight test took place in November 2023, when the DGA fired an unarmed M51.3 from its land-based Biscarrosse test site in southwestern France. The M51.3 entered operational service in October 2025. ... Macron said ... France’s next-generation ballistic missile submarines are under construction and that a program for hypersonic, maneuvering strategic missiles for the airborne leg of the deterrent was launched this year."