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The AMRAAM-Extended Range missile variant was successfully fired from a National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System, with support from the Norwegian military.
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The AMRAAM, the advanced medium range air-to-air missile has been in design and production for 30 years and has been used in 4,900 test shots.
It is currently in use across 40 countries and is used in the F-35 as well as the F-16, F-18, F-22, Eurofighter Typhoon, and JAS-39 Gripen.
According to a Raytheon spokesperson, the AMRAAM-ER variant utilises the guidance section of the AMRAAM AIM-120 C-8, a 10-inch rocket motor from Nammo as well as a 10-inch Control Actuator System from Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace.
“Designed specifically for ground-based air defence, the AMRAAM-ER missile will be integrated with the NASAMS launcher for increased air defence protection in the medium-range air defence market,” Raytheon outlined.
“NASAMS is owned by 12 countries and has been integrated into the US National Capital Region’s air defence system since 2005. The first AMRAAM-ER missile flight test was successfully completed in the second quarter of 2021.”
The capability is expected to continue to improve with continued testing.
“Integrating this new technology into the AMRAAM-ER ensures the advanced capabilities of the surface-launched munition for many years to come,” said Paul Ferraro, president of Air & Space Defense Systems at Raytheon.
“Agile software upgrades will continue to advance AMRAAM to stay ahead of evolving threats.”
In January, the US Air Force awarded Raytheon a US$345 million (AU$513.6 million) contract to provide more than 1,500 StormBreaker air-to-surface smart munitions.
As part of the contract, Raytheon will produce and deliver 1,500 StormBreaker air-to-surface, network-enabled weapon currently fielded on the F-15E Strike Eagle and F/A-18E/F Super Hornet with testing underway on all variants of the F-35.
“Fielded on two platforms with testing underway for others, StormBreaker has solidified its place as the leading network-enabled weapon across the Department of Defense,” Ferraro said.
Raytheon’s StormBreaker provides operators with the capacity to hit moving targets in a range of the worst weather conditions, providing an effective all-weather strike capability.
“With this contract, we’ll continue to evolve StormBreaker’s production to meet the needs of service members for years to come,” Ferraro added.
StormBreaker is the US Air Force’s leading air-to-surface, network-enabled weapon that can engage moving targets in all weather conditions using its multi-effects warhead and tri-mode seeker.
The StormBreaker’s small size enables the use of fewer aircraft to take out the same number of targets as larger weapons that require multiple jets. The weapon can also fly more than 70 kilometres to strike mobile targets, reducing the amount of time that aircrews spend in harm’s way.
