The U.S. Navy is to conduct a first over land live fire flight test of the Northrop Grumman [NOC] AGM-88G Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile Extended Range (AARGM-ER) in the near future, a service official said on Feb. 15.
“We will be transitioning to over land testing to complete our developmental test in the next several months in the China Lake [Calif.] Range area,” U.S. Navy Capt. Alex Dutko, program manager for the direct and time sensitive strike program office (PMA-242), said during a Northrop Grumman virtual briefing.
In addition, the Navy has been exploring a land-launched option for the AARGM-ER and whether the Navy’s P-8 Poseidon by Boeing [BA] should carry the missile.
“We are on contract with Northrop to evaluate the feasiblity of a ground-launched capability for AARGM-ER, culminating with a data demonstration in the next several months,” Dutko said. “We’re gonna be looking at the feasibility of integration of AARGM-ER from maritime reconnaissance patrol aircraft.”
PMA-242 expects that AARGM-ER will begin operational test this year. AARGM-ER is to have initial operational capability on the F/A-18E/F by the end of the year and that a full-rate production contract for AARGM-ER will come in fiscal 2025 after the fourth lot of AARGM-ER low rate initial production.
Last Nov. 30, the Navy and Northrop Grumman had the fourth successful live fire flight test of AARGM-ER, the company said (Defense Daily, Dec. 8, 2022).
In that test, a Navy F/A-18E/F Super Hornet launched the missile and engaged an unspecified “operationally-representative, moving maritime target” at the Point Mugu Sea Range off the coast of southern California. The four developmental AARGM-ER tests so far have been over water.
While the base AARGM model is used to suppress enemy air defense systems, the AARGM-ER model includes improvements to extend the missile’s range, survivability and effectiveness against mobile and more advanced surface-to-air missile launchers.
The AARGM-ER has a new solid rocket motor, warhead and tail control fins. The missile is to be carried by Boeing Super Hornets and the EA-18G Growler, and the tri-service F-35s by Lockheed Martin [LMT].
While the U.S. Air Force had looked upon its Stand-in Attack Weapon (SiAW) as an outgrowth of AARGM-ER, competitors for SiAW now include not just Northrop Grumman, but Lockheed Martin and L3Harris Technologies [LHX].
Each SiAW, which the Lockheed Martin F-35A is to carry, would cost more than $1.5 million (Defense Daily, Aug. 26, 2022).
Air Force plans call for fielding 3,000 SiAWs at a cost of $8.6 billion.
“We collaborate regularly with the Air Force,” Dutko said on Feb. 15 in response to a question on Air Force-Navy collaboration on SiAW. “As the development timeline for that weapon [SiAW] is a little bit longer than our weapon– AARGM-ER–the Air Force is planning to procure AARGM-ERs in this budget cycle as a capability offset until the Stand-in Attack Weapon is available, regardless of its final incarnation and manufacturer.”