Raytheon [RTN] has successfully tested a new self-funded conventional warhead technology to defeat elusive bunkers, the company said yesterday.
Dubbed the Tandem Warhead System, the technology is made up of a shaped-charge precursor warhead and a follow-through penetrator explosive charge, the Waltham, Mass.-based company said.
The 1,000-pound-class warhead is intended to destroy hardened and deeply-buried bunkers.
“The warfighter has a need for increased capabilities against this challenging target set, but because conventional warheads in the inventory can’t meet this requirement, Raytheon self-funded the development of this new warhead,” said Harry Schulte, Missile Systems’ vice president, Strike product line.
During a January test the bunker-busting technology punched through 19 feet, 3 inches of a 20-foot, 330-ton, steel rod-reinforced concrete block rated at 12,600 pounds per square inch compressive strength; this set a record, the company said
“In fewer than 10 milliseconds, the explosion delivered into the target more than 110 million foot-pounds of energy via a high- velocity jet of molten metal,” it said in a statement.
Raytheon’s engineers took the warhead from the drawing board to the proving grounds in less than nine months, Schulte said.
“Now that we’ve demonstrated it’s possible to create a conventional warhead that weighs approximately 1,000 pounds and provides unmatched capability, we’re looking at scaling the technology,” Schulte said. “We believe we can place a warhead that uses this new technology on any strike weapon system in the inventory in 18 months or less.”