Mid-Range Munition Completes First Cartridge Integration Test

Released on Monday, January 19, 2009

YUMA PROVING GROUND, Ariz., Jan. 19, 2009 /PRNewswire/ -- Raytheon Company , General Dynamics and the U.S. Army completed the first Mid-Range Munition cartridge integration test. The autonomously fired round struck the threat target from a beyond-line-of-sight range of 5.2 kilometers (about 3 statute miles).

MRM is a gun-fired, precision-guided projectile that provides beyond-line-of-sight engagement capabilities to brigade combat teams.

"This was the first completely autonomous imaging infrared-guided shot in the history of the MRM program," said James Riley, Raytheon Missile Systems' vice president for Land Combat. "MRM's beyond-line-of-sight capabilities will give Future Combat Systems brigade combat team soldiers, and potentially BCTs equipped with the Abrams tank, the ability to engage the enemy out of contact and win battles while minimizing friendly casualties."

The test verified two primary modes of operation: designate and autonomous. In designate mode, the round was initially guided to the target with a laser designator before switching to imaging infrared seeker guidance. In autonomous mode, the round was fired in the general direction of the target before the IIR seeker searched for and acquired the target.