Advances in technology and the ability to tie weapon systems into battfield networks is providing the armed services with over-the-horizon and moving-target strike capability.

Harpoon 21
Although Harpoon is a program that started more than 30 years ago, it has evolved as technology insertions and capability improvements have been made to the missile and its launch systems. Now a new program is developing that will build on the latest (Harpoon
Block II) technology upgrade.

Harpoon 21 will be a networked, land-attack capable, Navy strike missile using a data link to integrate it into existing networks and sensor platforms. Initially using a data link to receive positive target identification updates from a helicopter, Harpoon 21 will be FORCEnet compatible. This will allow targeting updates while the missile is enroute to the target from any sensor platform on the network.

This capability provides the Navy positive control of the weapon and builds upon the existing littoral and land-attack capabilities of Harpoon Block II. When non-combatant or friendly vessels are in very close vicinity of the target, Harpoon 21 virtually eliminates the risk of collateral damage while allowing the Navy Over-The- Horizon launch positioning.

SLAM-ER
The U.S. Navy has conducted a series of tests that demonstrate expanded capabilities of a Standoff Land Attack Missile - Expanded Response (SLAMER) missile to engage a moving target from a networked sensor platform. Results of the test provide another example of the role Boeing takes in developing network-centric warfighting capabilities.

Tests, conducted at China Lake, Calif., from an F/A-18, confirmed that the SLAM-ER has the ability to receive target position updates from existing tactical networks. The SLAM-ER capabilities of man-in-the loop target identification (where a pilot can see the target through the sensor in the seeker) and aim point selection are retained. The tests also verified that a pilot could readily identify and track land targets moving at highway speeds with a SLAM-ER while still at standoff distances. “SLAM-ER is the perfect standoff weapon to go against land moving targets in the near term,” said Jim O’Neill, Boeing general manager for Naval Weapons. “SLAM-ER already is operational against moving ship targets, and targeting assets already deployed will provide timely updates to place a moving target well within the SLAM-ER seeker field-of-view.”

JDAM
Another Boeing weapon that is used by the Navy as well as the U.S. Air Force is the Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM). JDAM has been highly effective in Operation Iraqi Freedom, and Boeing is continuing to evolve its capability.

The JDAM program is testing and evaluating data links for moving target and network updates as well as integrating a seeker to provide even greater precision strike capability. This will expand JDAM’s capability beyond fixed sites.