ATK to develop GMLRS alternative warhead
ATK has announced that it has been selected by the US Army to develop an alternative warhead for the Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS). According to the company, ATK was one of three companies competing to proceed into the Engineering and Manufacturing Design and Demonstration (EMDD) phase of the programme. ATK will be a subcontractor to GMLRS prime contractor Lockheed Martin.
The GMLRS alternative warhead eliminates the use of submunitions, but performs as a drop-in replacement for the currently-fielded Dual-Purpose Improved Conventional Munition (DPICM) warhead.
During live-fire testing by the US Army, ATK's alternative warhead – featuring ATK's Lethality Enhanced Ordnance (LEO) design – demonstrated that it meets performance and mission requirements, lowers technical risk, and matches current weapon flight characteristics without modifications to the existing GMLRS delivery system. In addition, the design improves user safety by lessening the risk of chain-reaction explosions should the warhead be struck by bullets or fragments, or encounter other hazardous events.
More from Land Warfare
-
Germany signs multi-billion-dollar deals for 6x6 CAVS and GDELS Eagle vehicles
The order is a further boost for the Common Armoured Vehicles System programme which has notched notable successes in the past 12 months. The first vehicle, made in Finland, will be delivered next year with local production expected to ramp up in 2027.
-
Rheinmetall and KNDS tank tie-up narrows trans-European options
The French and German governments signed an agreement in June 2018 to cooperate on the development of a new main battle tank under the Main Ground Combat System programme but the effort has struggled. This new agreement may damage it further.
-
Hungary set to begin using Hero 400 loitering munitions
Developed by Israel's Uvision and with systems being sold in the thousands to multiple European NATO countries and the US, the Hero family of loitering systems is also in production in the US and Italy, the latter through Rheinmetall.
-
Light Reconnaissance Strike – enabling a vital mission set (Studio)
A new system-of-systems concept will unlock digital integration of sensors and weapons for Light Forces, allowing them to shape the battlefield environment on their own terms and upgrade legacy platforms.