One launcher, many allied munitions — this is what a top general says the US Army wants for future war
Gen. Christopher Donahue, the commanding general of US Army Europe and Africa, talked last week about what weapons systems and technologies the service is focused on with its industry partners. One was under the topic of long-range fires and air defenses.
"What we want to develop is a common launcher," he said at the LANDEURO Conference in Germany, "that is both offensive and defensive capable."
Such a system, Donahue explained, would have a common fire control system that any US ally or partner can use. "Right now, there are many nations that if they buy a platform and another nation buys that platform, they're not interoperable because of that lack of common operating system."
"We want it to be one system optionally manned," he said, "and we want to be able to take munitions from any country and shoot through that."
The emphasis on building an optionally crewed system reflects broader efforts across the US military to embrace uncrewed elements to reduce risks to personnel, who, unlike a machine, can be killed or wounded.
Modularity, likewise, has also been highly desired in newer military systems, especially in uncrewed systems. Such systems can be reconfigured with different hardware and software depending on mission objectives, combat environments, enemy countermeasures, and individual soldier or personnel wants.
At LANDEURO, Donahue said interoperability was one of the top concerns from US allies and partners and needed to be considered by defense industry partners. Cost-effectiveness was also highlighted at the event as something to watch.
"As a general rule, whatever you're shooting at, whatever weapon system or munition you shoot at another adversary's capability, it should be cheaper than what you're shooting down," he said.
In recent months, Army leadership has been pushing ahead with a sweeping review of its force structure, weapons, and programs, cutting what it sees as unnecessary to be prepared for future conflicts. The Army Transformation Initiative ranges from vehicles and helicopter formation changes to heavy investments in new drones.
The efforts in the directive are estimated to cost around $36 billion over the next five years and represent one of the largest Army overhauls since the end of the Cold War.
Long-range fires are a priority in the initiative. In a memo from US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth earlier this year, the Army was directed to field long-range missiles that can strike moving land and maritime targets by 2027. Some existing systems could fit that bill, including the surface-to-surface Precision Strike Missile, the Mid-Range Capability Typhon system, and the Long-Range Hypersonic Missiles.
The interest within the Army in more long-range fires, air defense, and evolutions in offensive and defensive capabilities has been there, but new efforts stem from recent conflicts, including the war in Ukraine and developments like the Patriot missile defense engagements with Iranian threats.
The latter was highlighted by US Army Secretary Daniel Driscoll and Gen. James Rainey, commanding general of Army Futures Command, during a recent interview with Business Insider. Driscoll said integrated air and missile defenses are "one of the most demanded and deployed capabilities we as an Army have," explaining that the Patriot battalions would see increased investment and recruitment going forward.
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