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| F-35 Will Get SiAW Weapon |
International Military - The F-35 is a fifth-generation fighter aircraft made by the United States. This fighter jet has always been proud of because of its advanced technology.
The F-35 will reportedly get an air-to-ground stand-in attack (SiAW) weapon. The weapons allow warplanes to strike enemy targets in the anti-access, area-denial, and zoned environments that China is trying to establish around Taiwan.
The US Air Force is known to have awarded three contracts to three companies for the first phase of the SiAW development project. The three companies include Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman and L3Harris Technologies, Air Force Magazine reports.
According to Lena Lopez, spokeswoman for the Air Force's Central Arms Directorate for Lifecycle Management, the three-month contracts, costing $2 million each, were awarded on May 25. In supporting documents for the proposed fiscal 2023 budget, the Air Force first indicated that it was ready to move forward with SiAW.
The service has committed approximately $1.9 billion to SiAW development over the next five years, starting in fiscal year 2023 and extending through 2027. "We have been asked to deliver digital weapons that are open, agile, and rapidly scalable through digital engineering, said Bryan Gates, Northwest Florida Operations senior manager for MFC's weapons attack and air dominance unit.
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"It's an open systems architecture with a digital design that allows us to bring in parts and other parts from subcontractors [and] other companies to develop this weapon," Gates said, adding that the mix would be determined by the Air Force. To increase the flexibility and adaptability of future forces, the Air Force is also studying modular approaches, including air-to-air missiles and drones.
SiAW Missile
The SiAW air-to-ground weapon system is designed to attack surface elements such as "theatrical ballistic missile launchers, land attack and anti-ship cruise missile launchers, GPS jamming, anti-satellite systems, and integrated air defense systems" in anti-access/ area rejection.
The weapon's range will be shorter than that of a standoff weapon, which is meant to be launched from a distance beyond the range of enemy defenses, usually by B-52 bombers. In an interview, Michael Stuart, Northrop's director of business development, said an aircraft would release this stand-in weapon after infiltrating enemy airspace and inching closer to its target.
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To avoid damaging the F-35's stealth characteristics, Stuart said the stand-in weapon should be carried inside the fuselage rather than on an external mount. However, he noted that the internal space of the F-22 is not large enough to carry this armament.
Stuart further explained that the stand-in missile would be faster than any other weapon the F-35 could deploy. This will give it a better chance of hitting its target before enemy defenses can intercept it.
Meanwhile, Lockheed Martin shared a YouTube video of the F-35 releasing six SiAWs, four from the underwing station and two from the internal weapons bay. The missiles can be seen flying straight ahead and then straight up before the footage ends.
This flight profile, according to Gates, is the hallmark of a weapon that travels a certain distance before destroying its target. "If you launch from any kind of distance, you're going to get a certain height to get to your target solution," Gates said.
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The SiAW missile is being designed by Lockheed's Missiles and Fire Control division, adopting an advanced digital engineering process pioneered by its Skunk Works unit. "Applying new and emerging technologies to the way we design, build and maintain our products company-wide will better equip the warriors for success today and in the future," the company said.
The video shows that the SiAWs can be launched by volleying fire and guided to their targets simultaneously. Gates declined to specify what type of guide the weapon was used for. The SiAW is being designed by Lockheed's Missiles and Fire Control division, adopting an advanced digital engineering process pioneered by its Skunk Works unit.
"Applying new and emerging technologies to the way we design, build and maintain our products company-wide will better equip the warriors for success today and in the future," the company said. The video shows that the SiAWs can be launched by volleying fire and guided to their targets simultaneously. Gates declined to specify what type of guide the weapon was used for.
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The SiAW appears to be based on the Navy's Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile (AARGM), which is a derivative and extension of Northrop's AGM-88 HARM air-to-surface anti-radiation missile.
According to Janes, with a warhead and fuse capable of "expanding the target set" the SiAW would be even more significant for a fifth-generation aircraft such as the F-35. The initial acquisition strategy for the United States Air Force was to acquire weapons only from Northrop Grumman, but in April 2021, the service chose to open up the program to other bidders.
The Air Force wants to use the concept of an open systems architecture for this project, which will allow it to "plug and play" different modular systems, according to Stuart. Different components can be integrated more simply without requiring a rigorous testing and assessment process, and weapons can be upgraded more easily.
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