Forum-Sicherheitspolitik

Zitat:U.S. Navy Shoots Four LRASMs at Once
05 Apr, 02:59 3 Min Read

Weapon / Missile
U.S. Navy Shoots Four LRASMs at Once
The U.S. Navy has announced that in collaboration with Lockheed Martin, it has successfully tested the simultaneous engagement of four AGM-158C Long-Range Anti-Ship Missile (LRASM ) anti-ship missiles. The AGM-158C LRASM missile is derived from the AGM-158B JASSM-ER and achieves a maximum range of over 1,000 kilometres. Its basic version (C1) is already in service, while the C2 version is in the operational testing phase. The C3 version is being developed and expected to enter service in 2026. The AGM-158C LRASM incorporates a multi-function radio frequency sensor, a new-generation data link system and an altitude measurement system. The Air Force requested Congress to increase the purchase of LRASM in its fiscal 2025 budget to acquire 549 missiles by fiscal 2029 for $1.7 billion. The increased manufacturing rate resulted from purchasing 27 missiles in the fiscal year 2024, totalling $87.8 million. In FY24, the unit cost was $3.24 million each round. The five-year purchase decreases the unit cost to $3.22 million per missile. In 2018, the Navy approved an initial model of LRASM for use on the F/A-18EF; in 2019, the Air Force approved it for use on the B-1B bomber.

Zitat:LRASM in flight-testing aboard F-35C

The Lockheed Martin AGM-158C Long-Range Anti-Ship Missile (LRASM) has begun flight-testing aboard a US Navy (USN) Lockheed Martin F-35C, photographs released by the service show.

A photograph released by the navy on 24 September, taken on 10 September, shows an F-35C test aircraft with two LRASMs carried externally on either wing. [...] Integrating LRASM onto the F-35 has long been a goal for both the USN and Lockheed Martin. A solicitation to integrate the missile and platform was released in 2023, and artists' renditions of F-35s carrying LRASMs were a staple of Lockheed Martin airshow displays.

The AGM-158C is the US Department of Defense's (DoD's) primary anti-ship weapon and can strike targets up to 926 km (575 miles) away. The missile equips the USN's Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet fleet, fulfilling the Offensive Anti-Surface Warfare (OASuW) Increment 1 requirement. Increment 2 is the subject of an ongoing contest intended to result in a hypersonic weapon.