Excalibur Ib performs well during flight tests

Raytheon has carried out qualification flight tests on the Excalibur Ib artillery projectile to verify the performance and efficacy of the system’s new configuration. In eight firings, all eight rounds landed within five meters of the target, meeting stringent test objectives.

The Excalibur Ib is a precision-guided artillery projectile based on Raytheon's combat-proven Excalibur Ia, which has been successfully fielded by the US forces in theatre since 2007. Using GPS precision guidance technology, Excalibur provides accurate, first round, fire-for-effect capability in an urban setting. Excalibur is considered a true precision weapon, impacting at a radial miss distance of six meters from the target.

Excalibur Ib is being developed to further improve performance and reliability. According to the company, it also uses fewer parts and requires simpler manufacturing, resulting in lower costs.

Lt. Col. Josh Walsh, the US Army Excalibur program manager, said: ‘This programme has made great achievements in a very short amount of time. In two years’ time, the Excalibur Ib programme has moved from a competition to being well on its way to a milestone C.’

Kevin Matthies, Raytheon Missile Systems' Excalibur program director, added: ‘Our team is focused on giving our warfighters an Excalibur Ib design that improves performance and reliability. These tests verify the new design.’