Stormbreaker features a revolutionary
tri-mode seeker that uses imaging
infrared and millimeter wave radar in
its normal mode. The weapon can also deploy its
semi-active laser or GPS guidance to hit
targets. As noted by the company stormbreaker
smart weapon gives operators an upper
hand in combat by hitting moving targets
in some of the worst weather conditions.
The winged munition autonomously detects
and classifies moving targets in poor
visibility situations caused by darkness, bad weather, smoke or dust kicked up by
helicopters. Poor weather and battlefield obscurants
continue to endanger war fighters as
adversaries rely on these conditions to
escape attacks. This has established the requirement for
an all-weather solution that enhances
warfighter's capabilities when
visibility is limited.
The Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II Stealth Fighter Jet is well known for
stealth, reconnaissance, precision attack
and high-speed computing. But what about missile defense?
The idea might initially seem peripheral
given the heavy space and land launched
interceptor dimensions to missile
defense. Yet the military services are
increasingly leveraging the F-35s
long-range, high-fidelity sensing
technology, computing and networking
capacity to support integrated air and
missile defenses.
By developing the F-35 for missile
defense the pentagon is expanding the
mission envelope and operational
functionality of the aircraft in less
recognized areas that often linger
beneath the radar, associated with budget
cost and sustainment concerns. The primary function is multi-domain
given that the F-35 has now on several
occasions been successfully used in
tests as an aerial sensor node or
gateway system connecting air, ground and
maritime fire control in command and
control nodes.
Last summer for instance the F-35 was
used to relay target information to a
ground-based patriot missile interceptor
as part of an integrated, mesh network of
sensor nodes architected to track and
exchange threat data across otherwise
disconnected nodes. The F-35 was used as an elevated sensor
or an aerial node at white sands missile
range, new mexico to track and help
destroy a surrogate cruise missile
target.
The event was part of the army's Integrated Battle Command System (IBCS) program. The army's fast developing IBCS program
in development for several years, consists of a series of interconnected
dispersed radar and sensor nodes across
a wide area of operations. The concept is to not only network key
ground defense and targeting nodes such
as a sentinel radar with a patriot
missile system but also expand to
incorporate a multi-domain functionality.
In this capacity an F-35 can use its
sensors as a multi-domain node to
discover, track and pass along target
details to ground radar nodes from
beyond the horizon. This is exactly how the F-35 was used
with the patriot.
The benefit is clear in that faster, multi-domain networking and threat
tracking information affords commanders
more time and opportunity through which
to perform time sensitive command and
control functions. Specifically should a ground commander
learn of an otherwise undetectable
threat approaching from beyond the
horizon due to an F-35, more effective
decisions can be made regarding which
interceptor to use or how best to
respond or launch a counter attack.
The speed of information flow and data
processing can be the difference between
success or failure in a mission. An F-35 speed, data transmission rate and
sensor range place it in a position to
be uniquely valuable to multi-domain
missile defense operations. There are potential implications for
closer in air in cruise missile defense
operations as well as a possibility to
support ballistic missile defense as
well.
Using an F-35 in this capacity is not
necessarily new, as the navy has been
doing it for several years as well
through its integrated ship defense
warfare network called Naval Integrated Cire Control, Counter Air (NIFCCA). NIFCCA which has been deployed on navy
destroyers for several years now, connects ship-based fire control and
radar systems with an aerial gateway. Mode to detect approaching anti-ship
missiles from beyond its radar horizon
or field of regard.
The NIFCCA program began by using the
navy's well-known hawkeye surveillance
plane. However during the course of the navy's
development of NIFCCA an F-35 was used as the aerial gateway. Node NIFCCA involves some interesting
multi-domain networking somewhat
analogous to how the army used the F-35
with the patriot.
The aerial sensor node finds a track
from beyond the radar horizon of a
surface ship, relays the data back to
ship based radar and fire control which
then launches an SM-6 interceptor
missile to track and destroy the
approaching enemy anti-ship missile at
much safer standoff distances. Due to the use of an F-35 in this
capacity ship commanders can have a much
longer and more substantial time window
through which to determine an optimal
tactical response to the attack.
