AIM-120 is considered to be the most powerful advanced intermediate-range air-to-air missile (AMRAAM), even if its successor AIM-260 is still under development, its capabilities will be significantly improved.
A new version of West’s most popular radar-guided air-to-air missile, F3R, will be launched soon. According to the missile manufacturer Raytheon, the AMRAAM with this configuration will have an improved guidance part and will have any potential conflicts with China, the US's main competitor, in the future.
AMRAAM is the most advanced and proven missile in the world. Modern developments-such as F3R upgrades-ensure that it continues to meet the needs of future crew members.
Learn more: https://t.co/tUK3yxcGq4 #FlyFightWin pic.twitter.com/VV6EnaFVnP
— Raytheon Missile and Defense (@RaytheonDefense), September 17, 2021
On December 13, Raytheon Missiles & Defense reported that it had completed a series of captive flight tests for its latest AMRAAM upgrade, which was developed under the F3R program (form, assembly, and function updates).
During the captive-carrying test, the missile is permanently connected to the test aircraft during flight. Such tests are essential to obtain information about the specific design and how the aircraft carrying it manages the basic stresses of carrying and maneuvering at high altitudes.
During the test, the captured version of the F3R missile was flown on "several" F-15, F-16, and F/A-18 air-to-air interception sorties to ensure that the weapon functions as predicted under realistic conditions. This also tested the feasibility of the F3R upgrade and its compatibility with a series of fighter jets of the US Air Force.
According to the manufacturer, the captive flight was described as "the most stressful test so far" of F3R and the corresponding system improvement program or SIP 3F software update.
Raytheon and the Department of Defense conducted tests at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida, which is home to the Gulf Range Complex and has more than 130,000 square miles of training airspace suitable for live fire launches, including anti-target UAVs.
Previously, Raytheon had technical problems in the performance demonstration of AMRAAM F3R application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) design, hardware integration, and guidance in 2015, which caused the program’s critical design review (CDR) to be postponed for one year.
However, officials revealed in January 2017 that the F3R project will build a new signal processor for AMRAAM to assist it and ensure that missile production enters the 2020s smoothly. The upgrade is to increase the life and effectiveness of these missiles.
The F3R program was created for the existing AIM-120C-8 and AIM-120D-3 AMRAAM missiles, which have been considered the "best in class" of these weapons. According to the U.S. Air Force, the AIM-120D was used to launch the "longest known" air-to-air missile in a "long-range" test earlier this year.
The D-type missile is an all-weather, all-environment radar-guided missile designed to improve the U.S. Air Force's ability to counter extremely low-altitude, high-altitude, and high-speed targets in an electronic countermeasure environment.
It has a two-way data link, GPS-enhanced IMU, extended no-escape envelope and improved high-angle aiming capability, and a 50% increase in range. With the addition of F3R, these capabilities are expected to increase exponentially.
Raytheon engineers upgraded several circuit cards and hardware to the guidance part of the F3R missile, replacing the previous software with model-based systems engineering projects and other digital technologies.
F3R was previously defined in the Pentagon’s AMRAAM Selected Procurement Report or SAR as an update to “mitigate outdated difficulties in the AMRAAM guidance section”.
It is expected that the final result will not only improve AMRAAM’s overall capabilities, but also ensure its survivability, because production by the US military and export customers will continue into the next ten years, and about 40 of them have already ordered various AIM-120 versions. Including for ground applications.
Since the follow-up system AIM-260 is still several years away, the upgrade is designed to increase the capability and lifespan of the most powerful missile in the US arsenal.
F3R can be touted as a power multiplier because the new F3R hardware (including circuit cards and guiding components) provides a greatly increased processing power, and SIP-3F uses it to run its advanced algorithms. The hardware and software work together to improve the overall effectiveness of the missile,” the manufacturer explained.
The company told The Drive: "As F3R and SIP 3F software become available to warfighters, the combination of increased range and better guidance component performance will provide users with a significant increase in their overall capabilities relative to long-range threats."
#AMRAAM Joint Project Office has completed the second live firing of the new AIM-120D-3 https://t.co/KgKGo4fgUK #missile #defence @usairforce #USNavy #NAVAIR #Raytheon pic.twitter.com/XgiSboTU1C
Raytheon also emphasized that F3R has improved the seeker performance of AIM-120D-3, enabling it to better target enemy aircraft and missiles in inclement weather, even if the enemy uses advanced electronic warfare systems.
It is safe to say that these missiles are being upgraded in an all-round way to prepare for combat and keep potential opponents in mind in the face of modern warfare. This upgrade will provide enhanced precision targeting for the advanced AIM-1203D.
"The F3R program with SIP 3F will provide significantly expanded capabilities to enable missiles to respond to the rapidly evolving threats we see from the enemy today," said Paul Ferraro, vice president of air power at Raytheon Missiles and Defense. The statement said. The statement was understood to imply China, but did not explicitly mention that country.
In the context of the United States supporting Taiwan and China’s military aggression against Taiwan, the confrontation between the two countries has intensified, and the possibility of the United States being involved in the armed conflict in Taichung in the near future cannot be ruled out.
"If it doesn't endanger China, why should we do it?" Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall said. The Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) is clearly the driving force behind all weapon upgrades, including AIM-120.
Earlier, there were reports speculating that the United States was accelerating the upgrade of its AMRAAM because the range of China's latest long-range air-to-air missile, PL-15, was severely beyond its range.
AIM-120 is the first active radar-guided line-of-sight air-to-air missile in the United States. It has a range of 110 kilometers and a speed of Mach 4. In terms of range, many experts said that AIM-120 is not as good as China's PL-15.
General Herbert Carlisle, head of the Air Force Air Combat Command, said in an interview with Flying Global magazine in 2015 that defeating China's PL-15 air-to-air missiles is a “high priority” for the United States. "We must be able to exceed that missile," Carlisle said, referring to the range of the PL-15.
In addition, Russian military expert Vasily Kashin told Sputnik in 2017, “Although PL-12 has a range of about 100 kilometers, it is reported that P-15 can destroy targets 300 kilometers or even 400 kilometers away.”
PL-15 is an improved version of PL-12, the main tail and tail have been cut short, and the wingspan is shorter. This is done to allow J-20 "Dragon" and FC-31 fighter jets to fit into their internal weapon bays.
The missile has a medium- and long-range version and can fly at four times the speed of sound. It has a two-way data link that can be dynamically repositioned in the air and is propelled by a dual-pulse rocket engine. The active seeker on the missile is AESA aperture. As previously reported by the Eurasian Times, Chinese jets, including J-10C, J-16 and several J-20s, are equipped with PL-15 missiles.
This also shows that this weapon may be used in the context of large-scale wars in the Indo-Pacific region. This confirms the United States’ concerns and the need to upgrade the top air-to-air missiles in its inventory.
Miguel Miranda, an airpower analyst based in the Philippines, earlier told the Eurasia Daily: “The ability of state-owned enterprises in China’s military-industrial complex to produce on a large scale may be the widest range of options in history. Anti-aircraft weapons." times. "Including many analogues or complete replicas of US air-to-air missiles."
Although there are no exact numbers or official confirmations on Chinese missiles, the United States admits at some levels that the new PL-15 is larger, better, and has a longer range than its predecessor PL-12, so it has been serious if not absolutely exceeding its upgrade procedures. , It is ready to match the former.
Copyright ©2021. Eurasia Times. all rights reserved