New Missile Passes Multiple-Target Test
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EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. — An air-to-air missile designed as a mainstay for Air Force and Navy fighters successfully demonstrated its ability to engage multiple targets in a test Friday, Air Force officials said.
The test of the Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile over the Eglin Gulf Test Range was set up to demonstrate the system’s capability for near-simultaneous, multiple kills against multiple targets when launched from a single aircraft.
The missile is designed for the Air Force’s F-15 and F-16 jets, the Navy’s F-14 and F/A-18, the German F-4F and Britain’s Sea Harrier.
Last summer, problems with the missile and F-15 programs showed up during testing when four missiles were fired against four targets. The problem has been resolved, and a new series of tests were launched.
In Friday’s test, two missiles were launched from an F-15 flying at 650 m.p.h. 15,000 feet above the water when its pilot saw four oncoming target drones traveling near the speed of sound and at lower altitudes.
One missile scored a direct hit, and the other passed within lethal distance of the second target, officials said.
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