MBDA funded for SPEAR Cap 3 development phase

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By:www.janes.com
MBDA funded for SPEAR Cap 3 development phase

The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) has confirmed a GBP411 million (USD602 million) contract with MBDA for the weapon development phase of the Spear stand-off precision-guided weapon to meet the Selective Precision Effects At Range Capability 3 (SPEAR Cap 3) requirement.

Announcing the award on 18 May, the MoD said that the four-year contract will enable "critical design and development" to tailor the weapon for integration within the internal weapons bay of the F-35B Joint Strike Fighter (JSF). Subject to a planned 2018 review point, the United Kingdom expects SPEAR Cap 3 to enter service in the mid-2020s.

The SPEAR Cap 3 requirement demands a highly accurate, low-collateral effect 100 kg-class air-launched weapon with the ability to receive target updates via datalink in near-realtime; able to destroy/defeat fixed, mobile and re-locatable targets in complex, hostile environments, in all weathers, day and night, amid restrictive Rules of Engagement; and with sufficient range to enable the launch aircraft to stand-off outside the effective envelope of advanced integrated air-defence systems. The exact range requirement for SPEAR Cap 3 is classified, but it is believed that Air Command has set an objective tactical range in the region of 70 n miles (130 km).

MBDA commenced the GBP150 million Assessment Phase for SPEAR Cap 3 in April 2010 using funds appropriated by the MoD under sovereign complex weapons pipeline. Since then, the company has been refining and maturing its technical solution, also named Spear, through a series of technical milestones.

Spear takes the form of a mini-cruise missile, deploying flip-out wings post-launch, which employs GPS/inertial mid-course navigation, a two-way datalink.....................Read more