The Army and Raytheon [RTN] recently demonstrated the ability of an upgraded Army Integrated Air and Missile Defense (AIAMD) system to detect incoming threat missiles and launch multiple interceptors to destroy them.
Upgraded with a suite of improvements collectively known as Post-Deployment Build 8 (PDB-8), Patriot in a March 17 test at White Sands Missile Range, N.M., AIAMD successfully detected, tracked and engaged a threat-representative ballistic missile target.
The networked air-defense system then destroyed the incoming missile by launching both a Patriot advanced capability (PAC-3) missiles segment enhancement (MSE) interceptor and, seconds later, a guidance-enhanced terminal ballistic missile (GEM-T) interceptor.
The test was witnessed by representatives from 7 of the 13 Patriot partner nations, as well as delegations from Poland and Sweden. Poland has stated it is interested in procuring Patriot, according to Raytheon.
The PDB-8 upgrade, which was funded by the 13-nation Patriot partnership, allows Patriot to take advantage of many of the PAC-3 MSE’s advanced capabilities. The Lockheed Martin [LMT] PAC-3 interceptor is not new to the Army. It is the backbone of the Army’s ballistic missile defense system. The missile segment enhancement upgrade–-which improves maneuverability, range and speed of Raytheon’s PAC-3 interceptor–is manufactured by Lockheed Martin.
“Patriot users around the globe are currently employing interceptor mixes in ongoing combat operations to increase cost-effectiveness and provide commanders with operational flexibility,” Ralph Acaba, Raytheon vice president of Integrated Air and Missile Defense, said in a statement. “This latest test ensures the 13-nation-strong Patriot partnership will have an enhanced ability to use different interceptors in the PDB-8 configuration to defend against a broad spectrum of threats.”
The PAC-3 MSE destroys ballistic missiles in the terminal phase by kinetic force, basically ramming into the missile instead of exploding in its path. The lower-cost combat-proven GEM-T interceptor flies close to threats and explodes, destroying the missile or aircraft in the process.
Because ballistic missiles fly extremely fast and potentially carry weapons of mass destruction, the system gives air-defense commanders the operational flexibility to fire multiple interceptors at various threats as warranted.
Late last year, the Army, successfully destroyed an incoming ballistic missile with a PAC-3 interceptor at White Sands where the interceptor detected, tracked and intercepted a legacy Patriot missile modified to represent an incoming tactical ballistic missile.
A week prior, a PAC-3 was demonstrated intercepting an airborne target as part of the U.S. Army’s Integrated Air & Missile Defense Battle Command System (IBCS) fight test at White Sands. That test involved an MQM-107 Streaker target drone playing the role of an incoming cruise missile that flew in low toward an area defended by an AIAMD task force.
The tests are feeding into evaluation of the Army’s Integrated Air and Missile Defense (AIAMD) system, which seeks to link missile-defense radar, interceptors and command and control systems into a single deployable air-defense network with multiple air-defense capabilities.