Page 7 - ADT MARCH 2023 Latest Magazine | GBP

missiles that are stealthier and faster, and more
suited to the demands of the modern battlefield.
LRASM Demand Grows
In the U.S., defence manufacturers are working
to plug the demand vs supply gap of anti-ship
missiles. Lockheed Martin, which makes the
Long-Range Anti-Ship Missile (LRASM) and the
Joint Air to Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM), has
opened a second production line to meet the
increased demand for the missiles. The company
intends to double production, from about 500
combined LRASM and JASSM missiles, to over
1,000. According to budget justification doc-
uments, the Navy intends to buy 585 LRASM
missiles in fiscal 2024-2028, bringing the total
number to 833.

Lockheed is also working on integrating the
LRASM, which is currently fielded on the B-1B © MBDA
and F/A-18E/F, with the F-35 and the Navy’s
P-8 Poseidon. Lockheed Martin is now exploring demanding threat environment,” says Captain Richard Gensley,
using HIMARS mobile-missile launchers to launch Precision Strike Weapons (PMA-201) programme manager.
LRASMs; the pairing is likely to prove effective in
a range of scenarios, including conventional and Proving Its Worth
asymmetric warfare.
The Navy has another formidable anti-ship weapon in its arsenal –
“By expanding LRASM’s platforms and capa- the Standard Missile-6 (SM-6). According to Raytheon, the SM-6 is
bilities, we are continuing to generate flexible the only weapon that can perform anti-air warfare, ballistic missile
solutions for our U.S. and international partners Defence and anti-surface warfare missions. Although its main role
to substantially deter conflicts” says Lisbeth is not as an anti-ship missile, the Navy has on different occasions
Vogelpohl, LRASM Programme Director. showcased the missile’s capabilities in that sphere, including in June
2022 when it was launched from the Arleigh Burke class destroyer
USS Benfold (DDG-65) to hit the decommissioned Oliver Hazard
Eyeing a HALO Perry class frigate USS Vandegrift. The first test of the SM-6 in an
Even as it eyes the acquisition of an increased anti-ship role happened in 2016, when it was successfully used to hit
number of LRASM missiles, the Pentagon already the decommissioned USS Reuben James at the Pacific Missile Range
has started working on its successor. In March, Facility, off Hawaii, in 2016. In April 2021, an SM-6 launched from
the U.S. Naval Air Systems Command awarded the Arleigh Burke class destroyer USS John Finn hit a mock surface
US$116 million contracts to Raytheon Missiles target as part of a manned-unmanned teaming (MUM-T) exercise.
and Defence and Lockheed Martin for the initial
development for a carrier-suitable long-range, The SM-6 has more than double the range of the Harpoon Block II
high-speed ship-killing missile designated that can hit targets at a range of around 75 miles. Its smaller war-
Hypersonic Air Launched Offensive Anti-Surface head limits the missile’s capability against larger surface ships, but
(HALO). The companies have until the end of it makes up for the lack of size with its speed - in excess of Mach
2024 to develop their prototypes. 3. However, the SM-6 is more expensive than other Naval surface
warfare weapons as it has been designed primarily for anti-air and
The Navy wants to equip its aircraft-carri- ballistic missile Defence missions.
er-based fighter jets with the HALO missile,
which will provide greater anti-surface war- Giant Strides
fare capability than what is available today. The urgency shown by the Pentagon to increase the ship-killing
The service will spend about US$450 million capabilities of the navy comes in the backdrop of the progress China
on research and development for the missile has made in the field. In November last year, the country unveiled
that is expected to achieve initial operational its homegrown ‘YJ-21,’ or the ‘Eagle Strike 21’ shipborne hypersonic
capability by fiscal year 2029. The LRASMs will be anti-ship missile at the Zhuhai Air Show. Touted as the world’s first
phased out once HALO becomes operational. carrier-based anti-ship ballistic missile, the YJ-21 reportedly has a
range somewhere between 1000 to 1500 kilometers and a terminal
“As threat capability continues to advance, velocity of Mach 10, or ten times the speed of sound. The missile,
additional range, warfare capability, and developed by China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation
capacity is required to address the more Limited (CASIC), is developed from the CM-401 short-range hyper-
ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY APRIL-MAY 2023 | 7