Lockheed Martin is urging the US Air Force to revamp the Low Cost Autonomous Attack System (LOCAAS) project to cover a funding shortfall, a move that would also speed fielding of the precision-guided munition.
The proposal to reschedule the development comes as the Air Force Requirements Oversight Council (AFROC) prepares next month to review the results of the Miniaturised Munition Capability (MMC)analysis of alternatives study, of which LOCAAS is a part.
Also at stake is the future of the Boeing 115kg (225lb)Small Smart Bomb. The AFROC will determine how to proceed with the powered LOCAAS, a submunition with a laser radar terminal seeker and multi-mode warhead.
The $33 million LOCAAS advanced technology demonstration (ATD) is due to end in December next year after four powered flight tests. Lockheed Martin proposes extending the ATD to September 2003, during which risk reduction would continue and the explosively formed penetrator warhead would be demonstrated.
According to Lockheed Martin, extending ATD at around $15 million would bridge a funding gap and allow the USAF to skip the preliminary design and risk reduction phase, saving $300 million.
A 36-month engineering and manufacturing development phase would follow with a 2007 in-service date - three years early.
Source: Flight International