The US Navy has ordered 555 AGM-154 Joint Stand-Off Weapons (JSOW) from Raytheon for $180 million for itself and Saudi Arabia, according to a recent contract announcement.
The navy’s $58 million order is for 200 units of the latest C-1 version, which is currently in operational testing on the Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet ahead of its roll-out to operational units in 2016. Saudi Arabia is buying 355 standard Block III C-models for $123 million.
Raytheon JSOW programme director Celeste Mohr says operational testing is ongoing, and is currently in the captive-carry flight test phase at the Department of Defense's China Lake and Point Mugu test ranges in California. A series of free flights will take place some time between September and December.
JSOW C-1 adds a Link 16 datalink and an improved seeker for in-flight re-targeting and strikes on moving vessels at sea. When launched from 40,000ft, the weapon has a range of 70nm (130km) and a 10min flight time, during which its flight path can be updated.
The Raytheon JSOW C-1, about to strike a moving target during sea trials
US Navy
“This whole capability is really a first in the navy F/A-18 fleet, because you have net-enabled systems talking to each other in the air,” Mohr says. “It’s really a sophisticated system the navy is putting together.”
The JSOW family of 475kg (1,050lb) glide weapons has been in continual production and improvement since being deployed in 1999, and is currently integrated with 10 platforms, including the Panavia Tornado and Saab Gripen. It is also scheduled for integration internally on the Lockheed Martin F-35A and C, and externally on the F-35B, which Raytheon views as a strategic opportunity to boost foreign JSOW C and C-1 sales.
“Right now our focus is on getting through operational tests so we can validate this capability on the F/A-18 and get this fielded to the fleet next year,” says Mohr. JSOW has achieved seven-for-seven successful shots during its development and integrated test campaigns, he adds.
The navy's first JSOW C-1 order was placed in fiscal year 2009, and this latest production order should be fulfilled by April 2018.
Meet the family: Raytheon's JSOW A-1 carries a 227kg BLU-111 unitary blast/fragmentation warhead. The C-models depicted contain the 246kg British Royal Ordnance Augmented Charge (BROACH) penetrating warhead, which can punch through 1.5m (5ft) of concrete
Raytheon
Source: FlightGlobal.com
