The US Marine Corps (USMC) has conducted a successful test launch of a new long-range missile from a Bell AH-1Z attack helicopter.
The work took place in November 2024 and saw an AH-1Z conduct a live firing test with a weapon only identified as a “new Long Range Precision Fire (LRPF) capability”, according to the US Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) in a 13 February statement.
The test took place at Yuma Proving Grounds in Arizona, with a Marine Air-Ground Tablet device used to conduct the launch. This is the first time that a USMC helicopter has deployed a weapon based on input from a tablet.
NAVAIR offered no details about the distance the weapon travelled during the test and what type of simulated target was struck.
It is possible that the weapon involved is the new, highly secret Long Range Attack Missile (LRAM). The weapon is apparently based on an undisclosed US Air Force programme. With a reported range of 130nm (241km), LRAM will greatly expand the AH-1Z’s strike radius.
LRAM is among a series of improvements for the AH-1Z. An April 2024 presentation by PMA-276, which overseas USMC light/attack helicopter programmes at NAVAIR, lists several planned updates for the AH-1Z, including digital interoperability such as the Link 16 datalink and full-motion video. These improvements will help the AH-1Z play a role in allied kill chains within high threat areas.
Weapons updates listed in the presentation include LRAM and the Raytheon AIM-9X air-to-air missile, as well as a new target acquisition system.
“Assessments of current and future capability gaps of the fleets’ needs identified this LRPF initiative as a cost-effective, long-range precision weapon for use against maritime and land-based targets,” says USMC Colonel Scott Shadforth.
The USMC’s Force Design 2030 programme aims to improve the long-range strike capabilities available to marines, as the force shifts from a focus on counterinsurgency in conflicts such as Afghanistan and Iraq to great power competition with China in the Asia-Pacific.
