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U.S. Army Yuma Proving Ground (YPG) has nearly 2000 square miles of restricted airspace, a vast and precious holding used to test manned and unmanned aircraft—and their weapons-- in all stages of the development cycle.
The clear, stable air and extremely dry climate where inclement weather is a rarity, as well as YPG’s isolation from urban encroachment, makes it highly coveted for this type of testing.
Multiple tests can be conducted concurrently and without having to compete for runway and airspace with manned fighter jets as at many other installations.
One of the latest high-impact weapons systems tested at YPG is the Joint Air-to-Ground Missile (JAGM), which will ultimately replace the iconic Hellfire missile that earned fearsome acclaim on the AH-64 Apache attack helicopter. The Apache has always been identified with state-of-the-art sensors and precision guidance systems, as well as lethal air-to-surface missiles like the Hellfire, and, as soon as next fiscal year, the JAGM.
“It’s much more capable against an array of threats on the battlefield,” said Michael Kennedy, experimental test pilot. “That’s what it’s designed to do, and that’s what we’re testing at Yuma Proving Ground.”
YPG has been involved in developmental testing of the new missile for the better part of a decade, and a major operational test recently concluded.
Participating pilots give the new weapon’s versatility high marks.
“One of the things that sticks out to me is the simplicity for the crew in terms of how they select weapons for their missions,” said Chief Warrant Officer 5 John Bilton, the first non-experimental pilot to fire the missile, a milestone that took place at YPG last fall. “Before, we had to put a lot of thought into. ‘What do I need?’ As soon as I launch, I don’t get to come back and change out my missiles: In combat, you don’t want to encounter a target you need to hit and not have on-board the right missile for the job.”
The JAGM boasts the ability to use semi-active laser (SAL) or radiofrequency (RF) as a means of guiding it to target. Moreover, the crew can switch modes within seconds as a combat scenario evolves.
“Using a SAL missile, the last six seconds of the missile flight is the most critical to keep your laser sight on target,” explained Kennedy. “If you’re getting shot at and your line of sight goes off the target, your missile misses. JAGM can start off using the laser, then transition to the radar portion and still hit the target if the crew has to use evasive maneuvers.”
More capable in adverse weather conditions and boasting a longer range than the older Hellfire, the JAGM can not only be fired and retreat to a safer standoff distance, but also can be aimed without pointing the laser directly at the target.
“You aren’t required to have your laser sight on a target to hit it,” said Kennedy. “You can do an off-set laze to defeat potential laser counter-measures on the target and the JAGM can still find the target. That is a unique ability that will definitely be a game-changer on the battlefield.”
“The ability to not have to put the laser directly on the target and let the adversary know that you are about to kill him is a tremendous benefit,” added Al Maes, aviation weapons technical advisor. “Once you have the missile off the rail and encounter smoke or dust or fog, a regular laser missile could lose that target. With JAGM, I have a pretty good guarantee that I am going to kill that target with a single missile instead of multiple missile shots.”
The operational testers appreciated YPG’s vast ranges and variety of realistic targets as they put the weapon through its paces in a variety of situations and altitudes.
“We’re out here shooting at real targets,” said Scott McClendon, operational test officer. “It’s a real T-72 driving down the road, not a burnt-out hulk with a million holes in it sitting out on the range. To me, the real targets provided at YPG are really a value-added.”
To make the testing as realistic as possible, YPG personnel installed remote-control kits on four separate target vehicles, allowing pilots to fly scenarios where they engage multiple moving targets at once.
“It’s difficult and unique,” said Kennedy. “Having real moving targets adds good operational flavor to the test.”
YPG’s natural desert environment also contributed significantly to the realism of the testing.
“In an active combat zone or engagement area, you have multiple targets, half of which could be burning,” said Chief Warrant Officer 5 Scott Jackson, pilot. “The other half could be evading. Then you have wind shift and wind flow that could kick up obscurants and make it more difficult to determine a clean target set.”
“We also get more battlefield realism in that we get dust as well as smoke, so we get a two-for-one here in terms of the environmental piece,” added Maes.
Information gathered during the operational test not only validates the weapon, but also contributes new insights into training pilots on how to use the JAGM for maximum effect. Though the operational test is now complete, further developmental testing, including integrating new software to support the JAGM into the Apache will continue at YPG.
“YPG is way less restrictive than some other installations,” said McClendon. “We can put the missile through all the parameters we need to, including high-altitude shots. It’s really user-friendly here.”
| Date Taken: | 02.06.2018 |
| Date Posted: | 02.15.2018 09:03 |
| Story ID: | 264945 |
| Location: | YUMA PROVING GROUND, ARIZONA, US |
| Web Views: | 99 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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