SM-6 Block 1A missile completes final land-based test

The US Navy (USN) has successfully completed a third and final land-based flight test of the new Standard Missile-6 (SM-6) Block IA Extended Range Active Missile, paving the way for at-sea testing to start later this year.

Developed and manufactured by Raytheon Missile Systems, the SM-6 missile is an evolutionary development that marries the propulsion, airframe, and warhead of the SM-2 Block IV missile with the active radar seeker of the AIM-120C-7 Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile to provide an extended-range AAW (Anti-Air Warfare) capability over sea and overland.

Designed to be employed from Aegis cruisers and destroyers, the SM-6 missile has been conceived as the effector for the Naval Integrated Fire Control - Counter Air (NIFC-CA) over-the-horizon AAW network.

(Read more)

YJ-12: A big headache for US Navy

Robert Haddick, an American military analyst, unveiled recently why the PLA YJ-12 missile may be "the most dangerous threat to the US Navy". Among other reasons, Haddick mentions the maximum range as one of the key points to bear in mind, because the YJ-12 has an operational maximum range around 400 kilometers. This range represents really a threat, due to the SM-6 has a range of 240 kilometers, and the Harpoon has 315 kilometers, depending on the launching platform. 

Read more at: http://warontherocks.com/2014/07/chinas-most-dangerous-missile-so-far/

Raytheon awarded Standard Missile-6 contract

The U.S. Navy awarded Raytheon a $243,478,659 contract for procurement of 89 Standard Missile-6 Block I all up rounds, spares, containers and services.

The SM-6 provides U.S. Navy sailors and their vessels extended range protection against fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles and cruise missiles as part of the Naval Integrated Fire Control-Counter Air (NIFC-CA) mission area.

SM-6 delivers a proven over-the-horizon air defense capability by combining the Standard Missile's airframe and propulsion with the Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile's signal processing and guidance control capabilities.

Raytheon's Standard Missile-6 Exhibit Capabilities

The U.S. Navy fired two Raytheon Company Standard Missile-6 interceptors from the USS Chancellorsville, successfully engaging two cruise missile targets (BQM-74 drones) in the missile's first over-the-horizon test scenario at sea.

The SM-6 will provide U.S. Navy sailors and their vessels extended  range protection against fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles and cruise missiles as part of the Naval Integrated Fire Control - Counter Air (NIFC-CA) mission area. "The SM-6's ability to engage threats at significantly greater ranges than other missiles in its class is a game changer for the U.S. Navy," said Jim Normoyle, Raytheon Missile Systems' SM-6 program director.

In February, Raytheon delivered the first SM-6 from its new $75 million, 70,000 square-foot SM-6 and Standard Missile-3 all-up-round production facility at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Ala. In May, a Defense Acquisition Board approved full-rate production of the SM-6 missile. "SM-6 combines the best of our SM-2, SM-3 and AMRAAM missiles, providing an enhanced anti-air warfare and over-the-horizon capability at a reduced cost," said Mike Campisi, Raytheon Missile Systems' senior director of Standard Missile-1, -2, and -6 programs. "We have delivered more than 50 missiles ahead of schedule and under cost, and we remain on track to reach initial operating capability in 2013."

 

About the SM-6

SM-6 delivers a proven over-the-horizon air defense capability by leveraging the time-tested advantages of the Standard Missile's airframe and propulsion.

• The SM-6 uses both active and semiactive guidance modes and advanced fuzing techniques.
• It incorporates the advanced signal processing and guidance control capabilities from Raytheon's Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile.

El Pentágono aprueba la producción masiva del Standard Missile 6 de Raytheon

El comité de adquisiciones del Pentágono ha aprobado la producción a gran escala del Standard Missile 6 de Raytheon. Una vez operativo, proporcionará a los buques de la U.S. Navy un mayor radio de protección frente a aeronaves de ala fija y de ala rotatoria, aeronaves tripuladas y no tripuladas, e incluso misiles de crucero.

Características más notables:

• Sistemas de guiado tanto activos como semiactivos
• Espoletas de última tecnología
• Procesador de señales AMRAAR (Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile)