On June 19, the U.S. Navy flight tested the Block 2A Rolling Airframe Missile (RAM), a short-range interceptor used to defeat antiship missiles and other airborne threats. Conducted in Southern California, the tests successfully demonstrated the improved guidance systems in the Block 2A upgrade. The missile is slated for delivery by the end of 2019....
On June 19, Raytheon announced the first flight test of the AIM-9X Sidewinder Block II missile launched from the National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System (NASAMS) conducted in May. Tested in Andoya, Norway, the missile successfully intercepted and destroyed its target. NASAMS, a surface to air missile system using air-to-air missiles, was co-developed by the United...
On June 19, several rockets struck oil facilities near Basra in Southern Iraq. According to Iraqi security forces, the first Katyusha rocket struck the Iraqi Drilling Company’s headquarters in Basra, injuring three Iraqi workers, while no injuries were reported in the second attack. The unclaimed attacks came following several rocket strikes on Iraqi oil facilities...
On June 20, Iran shot down a U.S. reconnaissance drone operating above the Strait of Hormuz. Following the attack, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps alleged that the drone had violated Iranian airspace, a claim U.S. Central Command denied in an official statement. Official reports have alternatively identified the drone as a RQ-4A Global Hawk or...
On June 12, Japanese Ministry of Defense officials confirmed plans to study a space-based early missile warning system by testing an experimental infrared sensor in 2020. According to Sankei Shimbun, Tokyo will mount the two-color sensor on the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)’s Advanced Optical Satellite-3 (ALOS-3), an imaging satellite. Japan began research on two-color...
On June 12, India flight tested its Hypersonic Technology Demonstrator Vehicle (HSTDV) off the Odisha coast. Official sources offered inconclusive statements of test results; though initially claimed to be successful, other Ministry of Defence sources said several test objectives were not met. The indigenously developed missile was designed to validate scramjet engine technologies for military...
On June 9, the Iranian Defense Ministry showcased its indigenously-developed Khordad 15 air defense system. Paired with the Sayyad-3 surface-to-air missile, the system incorporates a new phased-array radar and can reportedly strike airborne targets at a distance of up to 75 km. The Sayyad-3 missile was first displayed publicly in April 2017. Related Links: Iran...
On June 7, Taiwan’s Defense Ministry confirmed the successful test launch of its Hsiung Feng III antiship missile last year. Conducted on July 16, 2018, the projectile was fired from a Cheng Kung-class frigate and struck a target 47 km away amid difficult sea conditions. The missile features a reported range of 120-150 km and...
U.S. intelligence says Saudi Arabia accelerated its ballistic missile program with Chinese technical assistance, CNN reported on June 5. Confirming earlier analyses on Saudi Arabia’s ballistic missile program, Trump Administration officials did not disclose the development until lawmakers discovered it through independent channels. In a statement, China’s foreign ministry stressed that “such cooperation does not...
On June 3, Russia fired a new interceptor missile at the Sary-Shagan test range as part of a series of trials, the last of which occurred in December 2018. In a press statement, the Russian Ministry of Defense stated that the launch was successful but declined to name the weapons system being tested. Prior official...
