The U.S. Navy and Raytheon Company conducted two successful flight tests on Jan. 27 and 29.
The first flight test demonstrated a Tomahawk cruise missile which was synthetically guided to hit a Mobile Ship Target (MST). The second flight test demonstrated a reduced mission planning time in a realistic “call for fire” scenario.
Mike Jarrett, Raytheon Air Warfare Systems vice president, said:
The combat-proven Tomahawk is unmatched in its capability. Raytheon and the U.S. Navy are working together to enhance Tomahawk and provide the warfighter with even more options in the battlespace.
In the first test, a Tomahawk Block IV cruise missile fired from the destroyer USS Kidd (DDG 100) flew a pre-planned mission until a surveillance aircraft sent real-time target information to the Joint Network Enabled Weapons Mission Management Capability (JNEW-MMC) located at Naval Air Warfare Center – Weapons Division (NAWC-WD), China Lake. The JNEW-MMC provided updated data to the missile in flight before it successfully struck the MST. This demonstration is the first step toward evolving Tomahawk with improved network capability and extends its reach from fixed and mobile to moving targets.
This flight test was the culmination of a collaborative effort between the Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division at China Lake, Naval Surface Warfare Center, Port Hueneme Division and Raytheon Missile Systems.
In the second test, the USS Kidd (DDG 100) launched another Tomahawk Block IV missile on a “call-for-fire” mission in support of shore-based Marines staged on San Nicolas Island.
Using GPS navigational updates, the missile performed a vertical dive to impact on San Nicolas Island, scoring a direct hit on the target designated by the Marines. The test provided valuable data for the Marine Expeditionary Force to evaluate and evolve their call for fire capability.
Image: US Navy