By B.C. Kessner
Raytheon [RTN] is now working with suppliers and conducting developmental testing of the Air Force’s latest variant of the AGM-65E2 laser-guided Maverick missile, with flight tests scheduled for next year and production deliveries slated for mid-2011, the company said recently.
“What you’re seeing now is a resurgence of Maverick and laser-guided Maverick because of its capability to hit high-speed moving targets and provide accurate urban close air support,” Mark Larson, senior business development manager at Raytheon Air Warfare Systems, told Defense Daily at the Air Force annual conference at National Harbor.
Larson said the company was working through the development with the Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps. “They all want these laser-upgraded missiles,” he added.
The AGM-65E2 employs the latest in digital semi-active laser sensor technology, which reduces the risk of collateral damage and enables the aircraft to use onboard lasers to designate a moving or close-in target.
“We’ve made a series of improvements on the laser…and solved virtually all of the backscatter problems that used to surface right in front of the airplane with some ‘own- lase’ profiles,” Larson said. The missile can still be guided as before with near-perfect precision using the other lasing methods where buddy aircraft or special operations personnel on the ground paint the target, he added.
The air, naval, and marine forces of 33 countries use the AGM-65 Maverick family of missiles. About 70,000 have been produced and more than 6,000 have been fired in combat with a 93 percent success rate, Larson said.
With large stockpiles of the missile found in the inventory of many friendly nations, the company is looking for ways to generate business by offering upgrades for the missile’s guidance units, something that costs on the order of one-third the price of a new Maverick, Larson said.
Raytheon has secured about $44 million in credits from past international sales and is working with the Air Force on this and using the funds on the development of the next generation of Mavericks.
“These will be coming off the line in the middle of 2011 and we have already seen some international customers in Europe, the Middle East, and Asia lining up,” he said. The plan is to send teams to show customers how to perform the new guidance system upgrades, so they can get the new capabilities without having to purchase more expensive new Mavericks, he added.
The company has also upgraded the CCD variant of Maverick, primarily through software algorithm enhancements that provide a much greater lock-on capability and higher-precision delivery, Larson said. “Now, customers can take their old A and B versions and swap out for a better seeker capability. What they used to see at three miles, they can now target from about 12 miles away and fire and forget.”
Raytheon has initiated a “Fly Before Buy” program aimed primarily at CCD upgrade customers, whereby the company provides loaner test missiles so pilots can compare the new picture capabilities side by side with their existing older versions. “There is simply no comparison, and they see that straight off,” he added.
Larson said the company has worked with four customers in the last six months and that he expects the first contracts to be sealed within one year.
The company could use the “Fly Before Buy” program to showcase improvements in the other main variant of the Maverick–one with an IR seeker–or the new laser-guided version once it comes off the production line, Larson said. There has also been a renewed interest in the IR version by customers seeking an improved, precise all-weather capability for use in ship attack, anti-piracy, or other night attack scenarios, he added.
“The Air Force is ready to get this out and we’re working with everyone possible to tailor this for their individual high-speed moving target and precision strike support needs,” Larson said.