Boeing and the US Navy are studying a development of the Harpoon anti-ship missile with man-in-the-loop capability to improve target selectivity and reduce the possibility of collateral damage. The US Navy's Sikorsky MH-60R multi-mission helicopter would provide in-flight target updates via datalink to the ship-launched, radar-guided missile, allowing attacks on targets closer to other ships or the shore.
The Harpoon 21 upgrade is based on the Block II missile developed commercially by Boeing and ordered by nine foreign nations. The US Navy has not ordered the Block II, but is interested in the Harpoon 21, says Jim O'Neil, general manager, naval weapon systems. The Block II upgrade adds precision satellite/inertial navigation and Harpoon 21 adds a datalink.
Harpoon 21 could be operational within two years of an authorisation to proceed, O'Neil says. The US Navy would upgrade its Block IC missiles, extending their service life beyond 2020.
The US Navy, meanwhile, has delayed procurement of an anti-ship missile for the MH-60R in favour of arming the helicopter and its MH-60S stablemate with the Joint Common Missile (JCM) to be developed under US Army leadership to replace the Lockheed Martin AGM-114 Hellfire anti-armour weapon. The combat search-and-rescue version of the MH-60S, design of which is about to begin, and the multi-mission MH-60R will be armed initially with the 5km (3nm)-range Hellfire, but the USN wants the 15km-range JCM to increase survivability.
The decision to pursue the JCM has delayed plans for procurement of a replacement for the Kongsberg Penguin anti-ship missile. However, US Congress has provided funding for Lockheed Martin to study the feasibility of arming the MH-60R with the Israeli Military Industries Light Defender, which has man-in-the-loop guidance, re-attack capability and a range of more than 90km.
Source: Flight International
