U.S. Navy photo (above) courtesy of Northrop Grumman.
The U.S. Navy and U.S. Army completed another major milestone with the Conventional Prompt Strike (CPS) and Long Range Hypersonic Weapon (LRHW) programs’ industry team in the third consecutive successful solid rocket motor (SRM) test.
This is one of several important CPS and LRHW milestones this year including two successful SRM tests, opening the Lockheed Martin advanced hypersonics strike production facility, and most recently the battery delivery at Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM). The I Corps’ 5th Battalion, 3rd Field Artillery Regiment, 17th Field Artillery Brigade, at JBLM is now equipped with the nation’s first prototype hypersonic system.
“What makes the U.S. Navy’s Conventional Prompt Strike and the complimentary U.S. Army Long Range Hypersonic programs unique is the identification of the unit, the 17th FA BDE, receiving the equipment, and Army and Navy warfighters being incorporated in the design process early in the weapon system development process,” said James Romero, CPS program manager at Lockheed Martin. “Being soldier and sailor-centric is a critical part in the design efforts to create a weapon system suitable and usable for operators to use in their specific environments. It is important to design a system around the soldier/sailor to make it easier for them to operate it in difficult or stressful environments.”
Lockheed Martin is the prime weapon system integrator to provide hypersonic boost glide capability to the U.S. Navy and U.S. Army hypersonic strike missile programs. Northrop Grumman develops the solid rocket motor. The SRM tests are paving the way to the next Navy and Army joint flight test, which will take place in 2022.
Lockheed Martin is developing a system that is meeting the immediate needs of the U.S. Navy and U.S. Army. The program’s soldier/sailor-centered design is just one element contributing to the timeline of success, progress and development of the program. The cross collaboration with the U.S Navy, U.S. Army and industry partners have been the key to CPS and LRHW staying on track to deliver the capability needed for our services and for the safety of our country.
The recent successes of the SRM tests are a vital step in the developmental timeline for the common hypersonic missile that will be fielded by both the U.S. Navy and U.S. Army. In just over two years, Lockheed Martin has developed and delivered hardware to warfighters and next year will be flying the missile and maturing its design.