Raytheon Missile and Radar Keys to Success

An October US Missile Defense Agency test of the Raytheon SM-3 Block IIA next-generation anti-ballistic missile interceptor achieved three milestones for the programme:
• The first successful intercept from a land-based launch;
• The first intercept of an intermediate-range ballistic missile target;
• The first intercept using tracking data from remote sensors, known as “engage on remote.”

Raytheon’s missile defence solutions continue to expand the defended area by protecting against increasingly sophisticated threats with the use of remote sensors. In this test, Raytheon’s AN/TPY-2 radar served as a remote sensor, tracking and providing the missile with data on the incoming threat, instead of using the phased-array connected to the AEGIS ASHORE system.

“This is a versatile and sophisticated missile,” commented Raytheon Missile Systems President, Dr. Taylor W Lawrence. “Our partnership with the Missile Defense Agency and Japanese industry made these results possible.”