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Yahoo
17-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Lockheed Pitches Containerized Launchers To Help Close Australia's Air And Missile Defense Gaps
Lockheed Martin wants containerized missile launchers to enhance a new overarching battle management architecture intended to help fill gaps in Australia's air and missile defenses. Containerized launchers might also offer Australia's armed forces new ways to engage targets on land and at sea, as well as in the air. Edward Dobeck, Director of Launching Systems at Lockheed Martin, talked about his company's work with the Australian Defense Force and what else it is doing relating to containerized launchers in an interview with TWZ's Howard Altman from the floor of the Navy League's Sea Air Space 2025 exhibition last week. 'So, we've been having a lot of good conversations with different countries in Europe and Asia about their need to provide launchers that are distributed,' Dobeck said. 'One of the most immediate [examples] is part of the Australia AIR6500 program. So we've been talking and giving them estimates specifically for containerized launching solutions as part of that.' Last year, Lockheed Martin received a contract valued at $500 million Australian dollars (roughly $312 U.S. dollars, at the present rate of exchange) to lead work on a new Joint Air Battle Management System as part of the first phase of the AIR6500 program. 'This system will provide [the Australian Department of] Defence with an advanced integrated air and missile defence capability, using next-gen technologies, to combat high-speed threats,' according to a press release put out in April 2024. No explicit mention was made of new launchers potentially being part of the AIR6500 plan at that time. AIR6500 is eventually expected to include a layered array of sensor and interceptor capabilities, as well as the command and control architecture linking it all together. The Australian Department of Defense had also released a major strategic review in 2023 that called for accelerating the acquisition of 'medium-range advanced and high-speed missile defence capabilities' and said that 'in-service, off-the-shelf options must be explored.' Australia's present air defense capabilities are currently limited to Swedish-designed RBS 70 short-range surface-to-air missiles, which can be employed from shoulder-fired and pedestal launchers, and the country's trio of Hobart class anti-air warfare-focused destroyers. The Australian Army is in the process of acquiring an enhanced version of the U.S.-Norwegian National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System (NASAMS) that includes ground-based launchers for AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles (ARMAAM) based on the 4×4 Hawkei vehicle. Containerized launchers from Lockheed Martin could be one off-the-shelf option for helping Australia's armed forces more readily acquire longer-range surface-to-air missile capabilities that it does not currently have. The Typhon system the company has developed for the U.S. Army, which includes four-round trailer-mounted containerized launchers derived from the Mk 41 Vertical Launch System, can fire the very capable SM-6, as well as Tomahawk cruise missiles. The SM-6 has the ability to engage a variety of air and missile threats, including a limited capability against hypersonic boost-glide vehicles in the terminal phase of flight. It can also be employed in a ballistic mode against targets at sea and on land. There is also Lockheed Martin's Mk 70 Expeditionary Launcher, also known as the Payload Delivery System, developed for the U.S. Navy. The Mk 70 is extremely similar in form and function to the launchers for the Army's Typhon system, and can also fire the SM-6. Lockheed Martin has also demonstrated the ability to fire the PAC-3 Missile Segment Enhancement (MSE) interceptor originally developed for the Patriot surface-to-air missile system from the Mk 70 and, by extension, other Mk 41-derived launchers. Variants of the Mk 41 VLS are already in Royal Australian Navy service on Anzac class frigates and Hobart class destroyers, and will be part of the armament package on the country's forthcoming Hunter class frigates. In general, 'there is a very strong alignment between countries that have Mk 41[-equipped] navies and [ones] that have a desire to add additional cells and firepower to some of their vessels based on a containerized solution,' Lockheed Martin's Dobeck said. In addition, 'some of the countries that we've been talking to are much more interested in the land-based solution and providing that Mk 41 capability on land.' 'We continue to see a lot of international interest in the European and the Asian market for this kind of capability that's going to be able to bring them the tried and true capability of Mk 41 vertical launch in a containerized system,' he added. Australia's armed forces are set to get an up-close look at one of the U.S. Army's Typhon systems in action later this year. A live-fire shot from Typhon is currently planned to be part of this year's iteration of the biennial Talisman Sabre exercise. Typhon highlights the potential for new containerized launchers to bolster Australia's long-range land attack and anti-ship capabilities, as well as part of the future AIR6500 air and missile defense architecture. The Royal Australian Navy is now in the process of integrating Tomahawk onto its Hobart class destroyers and expects to arm its Hunter class frigates with those missiles, as well. Tomahawk is a core part of the arsenal on U.S. Virginia class nuclear-powered attack submarines, a number of which Australia is currently in line to receive through the trilateral Australia-United Kingdom-United States (AUKUS) security cooperation agreement. The Australian military is otherwise looking to expand its land-based long-range strike capabilities through to acquisition of Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) and Precision Strike Missile (PrSM) short-range ballistic missiles from the United States. Loaded with Tomahawks, a containerized Mk 41-based launcher could hold targets on land and at sea at risk anywhere within a roughly 1,000-mile bubble around where it is deployed. The ability to launch SM-6s, PAC-3s, and potentially other missiles would only increase their operational flexibility. Containerized launchers have additional benefits when it comes to speed and distribution of deployment, as well as personnel and logistical footprints, especially if networked to a larger command and control architecture. The capabilities offered by a new array of containerized launch systems could be particularly valuable for Australia, which has extensive coastlines to defend at a time when the Chinese military is becoming assertive in its part of the Pacific. Australia's armed forces would also benefit from these capabilities in the event they join other allies and partners in expeditionary operations, especially elsewhere in the broad expanses of the Indo-Pacific in response to any number of contingencies. What role containerized missile launchers might play in Australia's future AIR6500 plans remains to be seen, but they could be on the horizon for the country's armed forces beyond the air and missile defense role, as well. Howard Altman contributed to this story. Contact the author: joe@
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
USMC's Tomahawk Cruise Missile Launching Drone Truck Eyed By Army
The U.S. Army has expressed interest in the U.S. Marine Corps' new uncrewed 4×4 Tomahawk cruise missile launch vehicle as a possible complement to its larger Typhon system, according to Lockheed Martin. The Army said last year that it was looking into ways to shrink down Typhon to help make it easier to deploy and operate based on lessons learned from its first overseas deployment to the Philippines. Typhon currently uses large tractor-trailer launchers to fire Tomahawks and SM-6 multi-purpose missiles. Edward Dobeck, program director of Launching Systems at Lockheed Martin, discussed Typhon and the Marine Corps Tomahawk-slinging Long Range Fires (LRF) launch vehicle in an interview with TWZ's Howard Altman from the floor of last week's Sea Air Space 2025 exhibition put on by the Navy League. Lockheed Martin builds Typhon, also known as the Mid-Range Capability (MRC) and now the Strategic Mid-Range Fires (SMRF) system, and the launcher for the LRF. The launch components of both systems are based on the Mk 41 Vertical Launch System (VLS) used on various U.S. Navy and foreign warships. The trailer-based Typhon launchers have four launch cells, while the LRF has just one. The LRF's launcher is mounted on a Remotely Operated Ground Unit for Expeditionary Fires (ROGUE-Fires) vehicle from Oshkosh Defense, which is based on that company's Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV). The Marine Corps has also fielded a version of ROGUE-Fires configured to fire Naval Strike Missile (NSM) anti-ship cruise missiles. It's worth noting here that Lockheed Martin has developed a fully containerized four-cell Mk 41-based launcher for the U.S. Navy that is extremely similar in form and function to the Typhon launchers. The Mk 70 Expeditionary Launcher, also known as the Payload Delivery System, can be readily installed on ships, as well as employed in a ground-based mode. 'There have been some discussions about how to maybe make it [Typhon] lighter,' Dobeck said. 'There's some interest from the Army and other services about that single-cell JLTV[-based launcher], as well, because it is a nice complement to the larger four-cell container that's on a heavy truck.' For the Army, Typhon does represent a major increase in long-range ground-based strike capability. The service currently has two Typhon batteries, each with four launchers and supporting assets, and is in the process of establishing a third one. Loaded with Tomahawks, a Typhon battery gives the Army the ability to hold land-based targets at risk anywhere within a bubble extending roughly 1,000 miles in all directions from where it is deployed. Current versions of Tomahawk also have the ability to engage moving ships, and a further anti-ship optimized variant is in development. Originally developed as a surface-to-air interceptor, SM-6 can also be employed against targets on land and at sea when fired in a ballistic mode. The Army has expressed separate interest in potentially employing SM-6 in the air and missile defense role, where they have a latent capability to engage threats moving at hypersonic speeds in the terminal phase of flight, as well. 'Right now, they're [the Marines] acquiring Tomahawks for those [LRF launchers], but it's the same size Mark 41 cell that is in a vertical launch system,' Lockheed Martin's Dobeck said. What additional changes might be necessary to enable the LRF to fire SM-6, or other missiles already available for use with Mk 41 VLSs, is unclear. 'From an MRC [Typhon] standpoint, you can see what that is going on in the Philippines,' Dobeck added. 'MRC provides a very strategic asset for [use from] the Philippines to be able to provide that capability in the region.' Typhon has the ability to reach targets in mainland China from where it is currently positioned in the Philippines, which has drawn the ire of the Chinese government. The Philippine armed forces are also now looking to acquire the system for their own use. 'Then as that gets deployed to other areas across the Pacific, I think you'll see that range and that strike capability that MRC provides come into play,' Dobeck added. The Army currently plans to conduct a live-fire launch from a Typhon system in Australia as part of this year's iteration of the biennial Talisman Sabre exercise. At the same time, as already noted, the Army has made clear that its experiences with Typhon in the Pacific to date have prompted interest in options for shrinking down that system, or at least some degree of the capability that it offers, into a package that is more readily deployable. 'So, the Mid-Range Capability, we fielded it, we have put it into the theater, but we're learning lessons on how we can improve the next evolutions of that,' Army Col. Michael Rose, commander of the service's 3rd Multi-Domain Task Force (MDTF) headquartered at Fort Shafter in Hawaii, said at the Association of the U.S. Army's (AUSA) main annual conference last year. 'How do we make it more mobile? How do we make it smaller? How do we make it more agile? How do we employ it most effectively and how do we sustain it? A lot of those lessons are feeding back into our RDT&E [research, development, test, and evaluations] and acquisitions professionals to improve and enhance that new operational capability.' The Typhon launchers currently require an aircraft at least as big as the U.S. Air Force's C-17 Globemaster III cargo plane to be moved by air. While we don't know the exact air transportability requirements for a full Typhon battery, we do know that it took 73 C-17 loads to move a Patriot surface-to-air missile battalion recently from South Korea to the Middle East. A battalion is a much larger formation than a single battery, but the Army's current Patriot systems do include similarly-sized trailer-based launchers and radars. The Air Force's C-17s are in high demand in general, even in peacetime, and the need for those aircraft would only increase in any future large-scale conflict, especially one against China across the broad expanses of the Pacific. At the same time, while very capable of using more restricted runways and landing zones for an aircraft of its size, C-17s could still face challenges in finding suitable places to touch down in the Pacific. Airstrips of any kind are still few and far between in many parts of the region despite U.S. military efforts to expand the number of available operating locations. Large, established air bases would be prime targets, and there is also the threat of ever-more capable and longer-ranged air defenses. Moving Typhon by sea would be another option, but the process would be much slower and could be heavily dependent on available port facilities to offload the system's large launchers and other components. U.S. military officials have said on multiple occasions in recent years that they expect sea-based supply lines to be heavily contested in any future high-end Pacific fight. As such, supplementing Typhon with something like the Marine Corps' LRF could give the Army additional options for pushing long-range strike capability, albeit with less magazine depth, into more forward areas. Using uncrewed launchers, which the Army is also increasingly eyeing to help bolster its more traditional artillery capabilities, could help further reduce vulnerability to friendly forces. 'Having a JLTV autonomously be able to operate and provide launching capability is very attractive from an expeditionary standpoint,' Lockheed Martin's Dobeck highlighted last week. In the meantime, the Army is still expanding its Typhon force, but there are growing signs that a smaller complement to those systems is on the service's horizon. Contact the author: joe@
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Yahoo
Sweden's Stealthy Visby Corvettes Getting Mk 41 Based Vertical Launch Systems For Air Defense Missiles
Lockheed Martin has confirmed Sweden's Visby class corvettes will use three-cell Extensible Launching System (ExLS) launchers to fire their forthcoming Common Anti-air Modular Missiles (CAMM). Adding CAMM to the stealthy ships' arsenals will give them a valuable air defense capability they currently do not have, but the ExLS arrays also opens the door to more readily integrating additional anti-air and anti-surface munitions. Edward Dobeck, Director of Launching Systems at Lockheed Martin, talked about his company's work relating to the Visby class in an interview with TWZ's Howard Altman from the floor of the Navy League's Sea Air Space 2025 exhibition earlier this week. Lockheed Martin provided additional details in response to follow-up questions from TWZ. European missile conglomerate MBDA, which manufactures CAMM, first announced Sweden's five Visby corvettes would be getting the new anti-air missiles back in 2023, but did not say what launchers would go along with them. 'So Sweden has a three-cell launcher that is being used primarily for the CAMM missile right now. That is providing them additional capabilities,' Dobeck said. 'Sweden is looking at putting their launchers on the Visby class of ship … So now that they're [Sweden] part of NATO, this provides them a great solution to provide them some vertical launch capability and bring that over to them.' 'The Vertical Launch solution for Visby is the 3-Cell Extensible Launching Systems (ExLS),' a Lockheed Martin representative also said when asked specifically what launcher Dobeck had been referring to. An artist's conception of a CAMM-armed Visby that MBDA previously released shows a trio of three-cell launchers on the ship. CAMM can be quad-packed into each ExLS cells, which will allow the corvettes to carry up to 36 of the missiles at a time. The Visby class ships are also getting a version of MBDA's complete Sea Ceptor air defense system to allow them to employ their new missiles. 'Sea Ceptor is a latest generation naval air defence system, providing robust self- and local area- air defence against simultaneous attacks, including saturation attacks, across the full 360° threat axis,' MBDA said in its 2023 press release about integrating CAMM onto the Visby class. 'With a wide target set from supersonic anti-ship missiles to attack helicopters and un-crewed air vehicles, the system has been designed to counter advanced threats.' The 10-and-a-half foot long and six-and-a-half inch wide CAMM leverages elements of the infrared-homing AIM-132 Advanced Short Range Air-to-Air Missile (ASRAAM), but is an active-radar guided design. CAMM has a stated range of at least 15.5 miles, according to MBDA. Lockheed Martin co-developed the ExLS with MDBA. ExLS leverages technology Lockheed Martin's combat-proven Mk 41 Vertical Launch System (VLS), variants of which are in service with the U.S. Navy and the naval arms of many other countries. ExLS is, however, not directly compatible with the canisterized missiles available for Mk 41-series launchers. ExLS was also developed with a clear focus, at least initially, on being able to fire CAMM, with the first ejection tests of those missiles from the launcher coming in 2017. Lockheed Martin says ExLS paired with Sea Ceptor can simultaneously prepare three CAMMs to fire from a single three-cell array. CAMM-Extended Range (CAMM-ER) and CAMM-Medium Range (CAMM-MR) versions, with maximum ranges of around 28 miles and 62 miles, respectively, have also been in development. CAMM-ER and CAMM-MR are physically larger than the baseline CAMM, and how many, if any, might be able to fit into an ExLS launcher is unclear. As already noted, ExLS launchers loaded with even with standard CAMMs will immediately fill a significant gap in the existing arsenal of the Visby class corvettes. Each of the ships currently has separate launchers for up to eight RBS 15 Mk 2 anti-ship cruise missiles and four 400mm torpedos, as well as the ability to fire depth charges and deploy naval mines. The ships also all have a single Bofors 57mm Mk 3 naval gun that is hidden inside a stealthy turret on the bow when not in use. The ExLS launchers, which are designed around modular payload adapters and an open-architecture systems backend, could also help the Visby class corvettes to fire other munitions, as well as decoys, in the future. In terms of missiles, in addition to CAMM, Lockheed Martin has pitched ExLS as a launching system for the Block 2 version of the surface-to-air RIM-116 Rolling Airframe Missile (RAM), as well as the AGM-114L Longbow Hellfire and AGM-179 Joint Air to Ground Missile (JAGM) – all quad-packed. RAM is also in service on a variety of U.S. Navy ships and is now set to be fitted on all of the service's Arleigh Burke class destroyers. Longbow Hellfire and JAGM were designed originally to engage targets on land and at sea. Longbow Hellfire now also has a demonstrated capability against drones, including from naval platforms, and Lockheed Martin is working toward similar anti-air capabilities for JAGM. ExLS could also be used to launch Nulka decoys, each of which contains an electronic warfare system that actively pumps out signals that mimic the signature of a large warship to help lure away incoming radar-guided anti-ship cruise missiles. Nulka is also designed to hover in mid-air for a period after launch. Previous reports have said that the integration of CAMM and the rest of the Sea Ceptor system onto the first Visby class corvette is slated to begin sometime this year, with the work taking around 12 months to complete. The timeline for when all five ships will have received this new capability is unclear. We do now know that the integration will also include installing three ExLS vertical launch systems onto each of Visby class ships, which could help pave the way for the addition of other capabilities down the line. Howard Altman contributed to this story. Contact the author: joe@
