Ship-based rotary-wing aircraft launched air-to-surface missiles are critical for missions such as helicopter attacks on hostile platforms and elimination of asymmetrical elements.

The UK Ministry of Defence announced that a missile test launch was carried out in the Aberporth Range located on the West Coast of Wales as part of the FASGW (Future Anti-Surface Guided Weapon) program. This trial was carried out under the program of integration of Martlet guided projectiles into Wildcat HMA2 naval helicopters.

According to the Defense Procurement Plan 2019 Report published in February 2020; Martlet, which is planned to enter the Royal Navy inventory in January 2021, was developed on Thales's Lightweight Multirole Missile (LMM) system. The weight of the ammunition is 13 kilograms. The low-cost light missile system provides effective solutions against systems such as waterborne explosives and mines, rigid inflatable boats, small surface elements. Martlet, which can be effective at 400 metres to 6 kilometres range, carries a 3 kg warhead.