Infrared Guidance AASM Successfully Completes Final Qualification Firing Test

Released on Wednesday, July 16, 2008

On July 9, 2008, French defense procurement agency DGA (Délégation Générale pour l'Armement) successfully complete the third and last qualification firing test of the infrared terminal guidance version of the AASM modular air-to-ground weapon at its missile test range in Biscarosse,

This "one-meter class" AASM version features:

An inertial/GPS guidance system identical to that of the qualified "ten-meter class" version, already in operational service.

An infrared imager that automatically identifies the target several seconds before impact and corrects the trajectory.

This successful test firing is the culmination of qualification tests for the "metric" version of the AASM.

The final firing test was carried out at very low altitude from a range of 16 km. The aim was to hit a target whose coordinates transmitted to the AASM prior to release had been shifted by 80 meters. In other words, this firing test was designed to prove that the infrared terminal guidance AASM could locate and strike its target to within 1 meter, in an area with few landmarks that would allow correcting the target trajectory.

The "ten-meter class" AASM is in service in the French air force and has been successfully used several times by Rafale fighter planes in Afghanistan.

Developed by Sagem Défense Sécurité (SAFRAN Group), the AASM is composed of guidance and range enhancement kits that give bombs already in service new operational capabilities. Following a recent agreement, MBDA France markets the AASM as part of its comprehensive offering for air forces in international markets.