XBradTC

So, I saw that little press release from Raytheon:

What do you do with an old missile? Replace it with one that’s faster, stronger, cheaper to deploy and much more accurate.

Better yet: Replace it with two.

Raytheon is developing a long-range missile that will allow the Army to field twice as many missiles on its existing launch vehicles. Thin and sleek, it will fire two missiles from a single weapons pod, slashing the cost. The new missile also flies further, packs more punch and has a better guidance system than the current weapon.

“We’re looking to replace a design originally from the 1980s," said Greg Haynes, a Raytheon manager leading the company’s campaign for a new long-range weapon. “Missile technology has come a long way.”

The ability to fit two Long-Range Precision Fires missiles in an existing launcher is a significant leap over existing tactical missiles.

So far, the Army hasn’t selected a contractor for the program yet.

But the Raytheon entry is interesting. The Army Tactical Missile System itself leveraged the existing M270 Multiple Launch Rocket System launcher vehicles and the assorted support, infrastructure, command and control and logistics to make the ATACMS easier to field.

Improvements in rocket motors and guidance technology now means Raytheon should be able to produce a missile of about half the size, but with the same capability, and again, the force structure already exists to support it.

While the LRPF program is currently focused on a missile that can strike stationary, fixed targets, I’d be interested in seeing what could be done by integrating active seeker to attack high value mobile targets.

For instance, with either an IIR or radar anti-ship seeker, an Army (or Marine Corps) artillery unit could hold enemy shipping at risk out to a range of 300 miles, a not at all insignificant distance.

Even more interesting would be if the seeker head of the AGM-88E AARGM was adapted, turning the LRPF into a very long range Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses (SEAD) weapon.  With its long range and relatively short time of flight, it could be formidable in that role.

One of the challenges future air campaigns will face is the threat of Russian built S-300 and S-400 air defense missile system. And one of the real challenges in targeting these two types is that they are highly mobile. It only takes a few minutes to pack up and move, and only a few minutes to set up and be ready to fire. The lag time involved after friendly Electronic Support  Measures locate a battery and until a strike can be mounted means that more often than not, the battery has already moved. The very rapid response time possible with a system like LRPF, particularly if equipped with a terminal seeker, would make it very capable of suppressing such systems, and allowing follow on strikes to destroy them.