Missile Defense & Weapons

A new 5,000-lb. penetrator has completed a series of release tests, paving the way for the U.S. Air Force development program to enter production later this year.

The service has taken the lead on defeating small drones, looking at near-term acquisition and long-term development.

Lockheed Martin says its proposal for the U.S. Missile Defense Agency’s Next Generation Interceptor could be fielded as early as 2027.

Israel Aerospace Industries has provided more details about the features and capabilities of the Proteus Advanced Systems’ Blue Spear anti-surface missile, adapted from the company’s Gabriel V missile.

Russia’s Zircon missile; Japan tests F-35B on carrier; U.S. Air Force looks for next-gen protections; and F-35A drops B61 test bomb.

Lockheed Martin has delivered a 60-kW-class, high-energy laser prototype for an upcoming demonstration on board an AC-130J gunship, a company official said on Oct. 6.

Estonia has become the first customer of the Proteus Advanced Systems’ Blue Spear anti-ship missile, opting for the land-based variant.

The Air Force Research Laboratory will meet this month with industry on Project Kaiju, its recently announced effort to develop new, high-tech countermeasures to protect high-value aircraft in contested environments.

Turkey’s Roketsan has revealed the development of a guided, small-diameter, air-to-ground missile designed to be fitted to multicopter unmanned aircraft systems and operated by frontline troops.

The Czech Republic has contracted with the Israeli government for four batteries of the Rafael Spyder ground-based air defense system.

Boeing has received another $1.1 billion to extend production of the active seeker for the Patriot Advanced Capability-3 missile system, the company announced Oct. 4.

The Russian Navy fired a hypersonic cruise missile from a submerged submarine on Oct. 4, a possible first if the test weapon includes a scramjet engine.

North Korea test launched a new, locally developed surface-to-air missile on Sept. 30, the country’s fourth test of a new weapon in a month.

U.S. Air Force wants to add hypersonics to B-1s; North Korea’s hypersonic missile; Boeing wins German P-8, C-17 sustainment contracts.

Dynetics has won a competition to field a 360-deg., counter-unmanned aircraft system and cruise missile defense system for the U.S. Army.

Stratolaunch has started installing subsystems in the first completed airframe of an initial version of the Talon-A before the start of expendable hypersonic testing early next year, the Mojave, California-based company said.

This webinar took place on September 30, 2021. The U.S. Air Force revolutionized air warfare with its use of the General Atomics Aeronautical Systems

DARPA’s HAWC demonstration program scores first successful scramjet test despite new scrutiny for U.S. hypersonic weapons.

Integrating hypersonic glide missiles and scramjet-powered cruise missiles on the B-1B fleet is needed to “remain ahead of our strategic competitors,” a U.S. Air Force Global Strike Command spokesman says.

North Korea says that it successfully launched a hypersonic missile, designated Hwasong-8, on the morning of Sept. 28.

The test by DARPA’s Hypersonic Air-breathings Weapon Concept is a key step on path to fielding a follow-on hypersonic cruise missile by the U.S. and Australian air forces later in this decade.

Aviation Week editors discuss hot topics from the Air Force Association’s annual meeting including China’s massive buildup in nuclear capability, a change in acquisition approach at the Pentagon and the next competition for aerial refueling tankers.

Astraius wants to use a Boeing C-17 airlifter to conduct horizontal launch of its Hera II two-stage launch vehicle, which is an adaptation of the Hera target missile used by the U.S. Defense Department to test missile defense systems.

The Joint Counter-small Unmanned Aerial System Office and the U.S. Army’s Rapid Capabilities and Critical Technologies Office recently completed a second demonstration of systems that can help counter small drones as the military faces a sense of urgency to stop this threat.

Los Angeles-area Karman Missile & Space Systems, a budding mid-tier supplier to defense primes, has bought Systima Technologies, which is claimed to be one of the few companies worldwide that can integrate energetic and mechanical systems into the structural design of space or hypersonic systems.