THE BRITISH ARMY HAS formally accepted the Shorts Self Propelled High Velocity Missile System (SP HVM) into service. The Ministry of Defence has also placed a further £37 million order with Shorts for the Starstreak missiles used in the system. Shorts is also hoping to sell the Starstreak as the air-to-air weapon of choice for the McDonnell Douglas AH-64D Apache. A joint US/UK evaluation is now under way. One of the areas to be examined will be concern over launch-debris damage to the helicopter. This debris is clearly visible in the SP HVM firing..
Source: Flight International