Posted on 05/20/2003 5:29:32 PM PDT by Excuse_My_Bellicosity
PATUXENT RIVER, Md. (NNS) -- The Navy’s next generation of Tomahawk Cruise Missile, the Tactical Tomahawk, took flight May 16 at the White Sands Missile Test Range, N.M., in the final phase of a Defense Threat Reduction Agency sponsored advanced concept technology demonstration (ACTD).
This was the second of two demonstration test flights of the Tactical Tomahawk configured with a live penetration warhead and completes the scheduled ACTD testing effort. Additionally, today marked the sixth successful test flight for Tactical Tomahawk.
Similar to its previous penetration test flight in March 2003, the Tactical Tomahawk was launched vertically from a ground test stand that simulated the normal shipboard Vertical Launching System.
The missile successfully executed all missile boost phase events and transitioned to cruise flight for its assigned land attack mission. The missile flew a fully guided flight using global positioning system and digital scene matching area correlation navigation updates, and impacted its intended target with precision accuracy. All Tomahawk test objectives were successfully demonstrated.
“Today’s test flight is the sixth straight successful launch of the Tactical Tomahawk boasting its design robustness and flexibility,” said Capt. Bob Novak, program manager for the Tomahawk All-Up-Round missile. “The program remains on track to provide the fleet with the most technologically advanced land attack cruise missile ever built. I am extremely proud of this government/industry team. Their efforts will put absolute combat power and flexibility into the hands of the fleet in the near future. Simply put, Tactical Tomahawk will be a centerpiece of an unheard of revolution in strike warfare planning and execution.”
The Tactical Tomahawk, or Block IV, is the latest variant of the Navy’s premiere cruise missile, due to reach the fleet in 2004. The Tomahawk is ship and submarine launched, and was first employed operationally during Desert Storm. Since then, the missile has been heralded for its accuracy and lethality.
The Tactical Tomahawk will field several enhancements, including mission planning aboard the launch platform, in-flight retargeting, loiter and battle damage assessment capability, and in-flight health and status reports. These capabilities increase fleet effectiveness, while significantly reducing acquisition and life cycle costs.
For related news, visit the NAVAIR - Naval Air Systems Command Navy NewsStand page at www.news.navy.mil/local/navair.
Related stories:
Tactical Tomahawk Presses on with First Live Warhead Test - 5/8/2003
Tactical Tomahawk Penetrates Test Range Target - 3/21/2003
Successful Tomahawk Launch Precursor to SSGN Conversion Testing - 1/17/2003
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