ALASKA, ELMENDORF AIR FORCE BASE, Nov. 13 /PRNewswire/ -- The U.S. Navy
and Raytheon Company celebrated today the achievement of initial operational
capability of AIM-9X with the U.S. Air Force. The 12th and 19th Fighter
Squadrons of the 3rd Wing, 11th Air Force, are the first operational units to
field and train with AIM-9X.
"I'm extremely proud of our AIM-9X government and industry team. They
have successfully developed and fielded a dominant air-to-air missile to the
American warfighter," said Capt. Scott Stewart, Naval Air Systems Command
program manager for Air-to-Air missile systems. "No longer a development
program, AIM-9X is a reality that will change the rules of air combat forever.
It's very satisfying to hear the words of praise from the Elmendorf aircrews
and ordnance personnel. After all, warfighter satisfaction is what it is all
about."
"We are extremely proud to deliver on our promise of 21st century air
dominance," said Donald M. Targoff, Raytheon Missile Systems vice president
for air-to-air missiles in Tucson, Ariz. "It is rewarding to see a program go
from a design and a dream to operational employment by our nation's fighter
pilots."
"We're thrilled the 3rd Wing has the opportunity to be on the cutting edge
of combat technology," said Col. Russ Handy, 3rd Operations Group commander at
Elmendorf Air Force Base. "The AIM-9X adds even more lethality to our already
awesome air-to-air capability. As always, the 3rd Wing stands ready and able
to place the right people in the right place at the right time, and the AIM-9X
will be key to our success during any contingency."
AIM-9X changes the rules of the aerial combat through a system design
approach that incorporates a fifth-generation staring focal plane array seeker
for robust guidance performance and infrared countermeasure resistance and jet
vane control for extremely agile turning performance.
AIM-9X has undergone an extensive and highly successful flight test
program complemented by a sophisticated and accredited modeling and simulation
capability. AIM-9X is a U.S. Department of Defense flagship program for
modeling simulation, saving more than $50 million in development costs.
The program scored an unprecedented 18 successes in 19 guided flights during
development testing and completed 22 Operation Evaluation (OPEVAL) firings.
The missile has also undergone more than 3,500 hours of rigorous captive
flight testing.
Currently in its third year of production, the AIM-9X program is on
schedule. Formal OPEVAL has been completed and all Lot 1 deliveries were
accomplished ahead of schedule. A fourth production contract award is planned
for late 2003. With a planned 18-year production run, AIM-9X will provide
revolutionary capability to U.S. and allied war fighters through 2018.
Future AIM-9X plans aim to further enhance the missile's capabilities,
particularly in the transformational network enabled warfare environment.
Potential improvements include lock-on after launch mode that creates a 360-
degree threat engagement zone and a vertical acquisition scan, or helmet-less
high off bore-sight mode, that permits first shot opportunity with AIM-9X even
if the aircraft does not incorporate a helmet mounted cueing system.
Eleven countries have expressed interest in the AIM-9X. Switzerland, South
Korea and Poland have selected AIM-9X to fill their future short-range missile
requirements after thorough comprehensive evaluations. Raytheon expects to
produce more than 10,000 missiles to be divided between the Navy and Air Force
and more than 5,000 for international customers.
Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTN), with 2002 sales of $16.8 billion, is an
industry leader in defense, government and commercial electronics, space,
information technology, technical services, and business and special mission
aircraft. With headquarters in Waltham, Mass., Raytheon employs more than
76,000 people worldwide.
Contact:
Barbara J. Starr
520.794.8580
SOURCE Raytheon Company
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Related links:
http://www.raytheon.com
CONTACT:
Barbara J. Starr of Raytheon Company,
+1-520-794-8580
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