CLAWS, AMRAAM Weapon System, Enters Flight Tests

Released on Tuesday, August 31, 2004

Raytheon has announced that the US Marine Corps' Complementary Low-Altitude Weapon System (CLAWS) successfully completed its first live fire test scoring a direct hit of the target drone at the US Army's White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico.

The test objectives were achieved with the launcher in full tactical configuration and a USMC unit operating the system. The CLAWS uses the combat proven AIM-120 AMRAAM missile to provide all-weather, low-cost, affordable, highly capable air defense capability to Marine Corps expeditionary combat units on the ground.

The first CLAWS flight test will be followed by two more flight test aimed at validating the weapon system components in realistic scenarios were the CLAWS might be deployed. The CLAWS consists of the Raytheon IDS CLAWS launcher, the Thales-Raytheon Sentinel radar system, the Raytheon Solipsys Multi-Source Correlator Tracker and Tactical Display Framework, and the AIM-120 AMRAAM missile as the interceptor.

This program is part of Raytheon IDS' Integrated Air Defense System product line and will be the first block to be fielded as the Marine variant to the Army/Marine Ground Launched AMRAAM launcher program. All the system's components are mounted on the highly mobile HMMWV (Humvee) all-terrain vehicle.