Hydras & Hellfires
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DID recently covered the versatile Hydra-70 rocket family, and noted the project underway to convert these ubiquitous rockets into cheap laser-guided precision weapons via the APKWS II (Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System) program. The ability to vastly expand both the varieties of aircraft, helicopters, and UAVs carrying precision weapons and the number of weapons per platform, all in a package that is good enough for most targets and offers both more warhead flexibility and reduced collateral damage, is a pretty significant combination. Precision Hydra weapons also have the capacity for high-explosive and even thermobaric warheads that can kill personnel, destroy most armored personnel carriers and lighter vehicles, and even collapse buildings if the Marines’ SMAW experiences in Fallujah are any indication.

APKWS
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After numerous delays and false starts since its inception in 1996, “Hellfire Jr.” Hydras appear to be on their way to System Design and Development (SDD). Lockheed, Raytheon, and BAE Systems were all battling for this program, which could pick up large US and international orders and remain in production for a long time. BAE Systems’ team won, and their product has performed to spec in tests, but the APKWS budget request was “zeroed” out in FY 2008. Congressional support may restore funding, but in the meantime a strong competitor has been developed privately by Lockheed – and a project with Korea will throw another guided 70mm rocket into the mix….

Contracts and Key Developments

APKWS from Cobra
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Sept 19/07: BAE Systems shoots 2 guided APKWS rockets from a U.S. Marine Corps Cobra helicopter at NAS China Lake, marking the weapon’s first flights from an aircraft. Following the launches, both APKWS rockets were guided by a laser designator to a ground target. The first rocket was guided to the target by a ground-based laser designator. The pilot guided the second rocket to the target using laser designation equipment onboard the helicopter. Both rockets struck the target board well within accuracy requirements established by the Army and Marine Corps.

The flights, held in partnership with the U.S. Navy program office, were designed to confirm the APKWS rocket’s compatibility with the Cobra’s carriage and launch systems, and to demonstrate that APKWS can be launched from the platform without requiring aircraft integration or modifications. The tests also proved again the weapon’s ability to acquire, track, and hit a laser-designated target. BAE Systems North America release.

BAE/GD APKWS
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BAE informs DID that the US Navy and USMC continue to pursue funding of APKWS-II within the FY 2008 appropriations process, with the goal of completing SDD and entering Milestone C in the second quarter of CY 2009. Meanwhile, development continues using FY 2007 funds.

April 11/07: BAE Systems’ APKWS II successfully completes environmental tests. They verified protection from sand, dust, vibration, ice, and other environmental hazards likely to be found in combat situations. Locating the weapon’s Distributed Aperture Semi-Active Laser Seeker (DASALS) within the rocket’s mid-body, with wings and optics sealed within the guidance section, certainly helps. In addition, a fully assembled 35-pound rocket dropped directly on its nose from a height of 3 feet sustained no damage to the guidance section. BAE Systems release.

March 19/07: BAE Systems informs DID that APKWS II funding has been zeroed out in the FY 2008 budget request, and they are putting the program on hold. Congressional reinstatement is always possible – but if it fails BAE may face an uphill battle getting its product to market, given the advance of competitors like Lockheed Martin’s DAGR and the US-Korean LOGIR.

DAGR launch test
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March 7/07: Lockheed may have lost, but it didn’t give up. While “Hellfire Jr.” is an apt description of the class as a whole, it’s especially apt in this case. The DAGR (70mm Direct Attack Guided Rocket, not to be confused with DAGR hand-held GPS locators) completed development with private company funding. leveraging existing Hellfire and Joint Common Missile technology to create semi-active guided rockets that offer a wider aiming cone and full Hellfire functionality. Indeed, they can be launched from any platform that currently supports the Hellfire missile, removing any requirements for additional training or infrastructure.

The DAGR rocket was formally unveiled as complete and for sale on Sept 11/07, at Britain’s DESi defense exhibition, and become a strong competitor in the USA and beyond. See “Guided Hydra Rockets: Program Halts & New Entries” for more information, and updates.

March 2/07: Korea and the United States have agreed to cooperate in developing guided air-launched rockets, signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) for “LOGIR” (Low-Cost Guided Imaging Rocket) development. The budget for this project is reportedly more than $60 million. See “Guided Hydra Rockets: Program Halts & New Entries” for more information and updates.

APKWS on target
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April 27/06: The U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Life Cycle Management Command (AMCOM) just awarded a 3-year, $45.7 million contract to BAE Systems in Nashua, NH for the system development and demonstration of the Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS) II. The contract includes priced options for qualification of the system and two years of Low Rate Initial Production that could begin as early as 2007. The total program, if all options are exercised, will be $96.1 million.

Interestingly, BAE Systems uses a mid-body guidance approach. The guidance component is its Distributed Aperture Semi-Active Laser Seeker (DASALS), which is also used in the Army’s Precision Guided Mortar Munitions Program. BAE Systems is partnered with General Dynamics (who makes the Hydra rockets) and Northrop Grumman, and is reported to be on track to provide the first production baseline units for evaluation prior to the Critical Design Review in July 2006. See also BAE North America release.

DID’s focus article for the Hydra-70 rocket family goes into more detail re: the past history of the APKWS effort, including its cancellation and replacement by the APKWS II competition.

Sept 29/05: BAE Systems announces [BAE North America release | different BAE Systems release] 2 successful flight tests at the U.S. Armys Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona. Their 70mm rockets scored direct hits on laser-designated stationary and moving targets.

BAE also announced that it will bid on APKWS II as a prime contractor, along with Northrop Grumman Corp. and General Dynamics. They join other consortia already in the APKWS II competition, led by Lockheed and Raytheon.

Additional Readings:

• BAE Systems – Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS)

• DID Spotlight article – Guided Hydra Rockets: Program Halts & New Entries. Covers Lockheed Martin’s competing DAGR, which was formally unveiled as a complete, for-sale system on Sept 11/07, and the US-Korean LOGIR program.

• DID FOCUS article – Hydra-70 Rockets: From Cutbacks to the Future of Warfare.