Paul Lewis/WASHINGTON DC
The US Marine Corps will decide whether to equip its Boeing AV-8B Harrier IIs with the Rafael Litening targeting and navigation pod by the end of July at the conclusion of demonstration trials.
USMC planning had called for the initial funding of a pod acquisition to equip its AV-8Bs from fiscal year 2002, but it is considering an accelerated off-the-shelf purchase of the Litening. It may order 56 pods, but would require supplemental post-Kosovo funding from Congress, says an official.
The move is a direct result of shortcomings highlighted by the recent Kosovo conflict. Unlike the UK Royal Air Force's British Aerospace Harrier GR7s, the USMC AV-8Bs are not equipped with a laser or imaging targeting pod and depend on other aircraft for laser-guided bomb designation.
While the Marconi Avionics Thermal Imaging Airborne Laser Designator is already on the GR7, it has been ruled out of USMC consideration, along with the Lockheed Martin Lantirn system. The Marines want a system with a laser spot tracker as a conventional bombing reference using unguided munitions, as well as a system already in the US inventory.
The Litening has already been ordered by the US Air National Guard for its Lockheed Martin F-16s and the USMC hopes that by "tagging on" an order, it could take delivery of its first pod as early as next year. The only suitable alternative is the Raytheon ATFLIR developed for the Boeing F/A-18E/F, but that would not be available before 2003/4.
As well as being available earlier, Litening is lighter and would cost as little as $2 million to be integrated on the AV-8B, claims a USMC source. Flight trials of the laser designator and infrared navigation pod are under way at China Lake, California, using a modified AV-8B.
For demonstration purposes, the Litening has been fitted to the AV-8B using its Raytheon Maverick missile controller interface and cockpit head-down display. Additional funding would be needed to enable the Litening to interface with the aircraft's head-up display, while the planned open system software upgrade would provide the necessary additional computing power.
Source: Flight International
