Article Posted on : - Aug 31, 2010

A file photo.

ORLANDO (BNS): US Army has successfully tested the new ‘Romeo’ version of HELLFIRE II air-to-ground missile system.

The multi-purpose AGM 114R HELLFIRE II missile was test fired from the Eglin Air Force Base, Florida.

Armed with a live warhead, the missile was fired at a stationary M60 tank located 6.4 kilometers downrange. It struck and destroyed the target in its “third proof-of-principle flight test.”

The ground-launch test was configured to simulate launch from an unmanned aerial system (UAS), the missile’s producer, Lockheed Martin said.

The missile was launched in lock-on-after-launch mode with a high trajectory to simulate launch from a UAS. It used its inertial measurement unit and targeting data to fly to the approximate location of the target before beginning its search for the laser signal generated by the ground-based targeting laser. The missile acquired the laser spot and struck the target within inches of the laser aimpoint, the company said.

The HELLFIRE II has been designed for launch from air, sea and ground platforms. The new variant of the missile, AGM-114R, features a number of technological improvements.