HELLFIRE scores direct hit
The latest multi-functional AGM-114R HELLFIRE II missile scored a direct hit during its first proof-of-principle (POP) flight test at Eglin AFB. The HELLFIRE II design, now entering the qualification phase, features a new multi-purpose warhead that enables a single missile to cover all of the target sets of the current laser-guided HELLFIRE II variants.
The POP 1 flight test featured a lock-on-before-launch engagement of a stationary target board at 3.2 miles (5.1 km). The team used a ground-based laser designator to illuminate the target. The inert missile, which was ground-launched, was equipped with an enhanced telemetry package. In addition to proving out the new components and software, the flight also verified backward compatibility with HELLFIRE II platforms that cannot provide targeting information to the missile.
"The multi-functional HELLFIRE II missile is one missile for many missions," said Ken Musculus, director of Air-to-Ground Missile Systems Programs at Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control. "Its multi-functional warhead enables the AGM-114R to neutralize a broad set of targets previously covered by four different warhead models - everything from armor and air defense systems to patrol boats and enemy combatants in SUVs or caves. Warfighters won't have to decide ahead of time what they might encounter and load the appropriate combination of missiles; with the multi-functional HELLFIRE II, they can meet many contingencies with a single missile."
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Missile vertical launch system trials