Global Network - bmd articles

13 September 2018
Japan successfully tests ballistic missile defense system
By Stephen Carlson
Space Daily

http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/Japan_successfully_tests_ballistic_missile_defense_system_999.html

Northrop Grumman tests new air defense network program
Washington (UPI) Sep 13, 2018 - Northrop Grumman successfully tested the Integrated Air and Missile Defense Battle Command System air defense system at White Sands Missile Range, N.M.

Three weeks of U.S. Army-led testing in April and May lead to IBCS improvements approach to air and missile defense, officials at Grumman said this week.

During the live air test, IBCS demonstrated combining data from sensors and other sources in simulated engagements of both live and digital fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, cruise missile and tactical ballistic missile targets.

Fighter aircraft such as F-15 Eagle, F-16 Fighting Falcon and the C-12 turboprop were used as targets for the simulated engagements at White Sands..

Northrop Grumman's IBCS is the centerpiece of the Army's Integrated Air and Missile Defense system of systems, which is under development. Twenty major IBCS components were involved in the trial, including IBCS engagement operations centers and integrated fire control network relays.

The test included launcher and sensor controls in a live environment, simultaneous simulated engagements of multiple aerial targets and the Link 16 tactical data and Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast air traffic management network.

"IBCS continues to show high levels of performance and reliability," Dan Verwiel, Northrop Grumman vice president and general manager of missile defense and protective systems, said in a press release.

"As the command-and-control backbone of the Army's future air and missile defense enterprise, IBCS will undergo increasingly complex tests as it works through development and prepares for operational fielding in the future," Verwiel said.

The program has experienced a number of technical programs, including software and integration issues, but development and testing has continued moving forward.

IBCS is expected to be adopted by Poland as part of it's air and ballistic missile defense modernization program. IBCS is designed to help coordinate multiple modern and legacy air-defense systems through a single command-and-control system.

Washington (SPX) - The Japanese destroyer JS Atago, the U.S. Navy, U.S. Missile Defense Agency and Lockheed Martin have tested an upgraded Aegis Combat System Ballistic Missile Defense system for the Japanese navy.

The Japanese Flight Test Mission-05 exercise on Sept. 11 successfully intercepted a separating target simulating a ballistic missile warhead, Lockheed announced on Thursday.

The launch test follows a modernization of the JS Atago. The JS Atago Aegis Weapon System BMD is part of a joint weapons system used by the United States and allied nations for air and missile defense.

The target missile was launched from the Pacific Missile Range Facility in Hawaii, and the Atago intercepted it using a Standard Missile-3 Block 1B missile, according to Raytheon, which makes the defensive missile system.

Raytheon said that while Japan currently uses the SM-3 Block 1A interceptor, the newer 1B offers better control and allows for engagement with a wider set of threats.

"I commend the Japan Maritime Self Defense Force for their commitment to affordability and innovation," Mary Keiferd, director of Lockheed Martin's Aegis International programs, Integrated Warfare Systems and Sensors, said in a press release.

"This baseline modernization effort streamlined their lifetime support costs and provided a means to gain advanced BMD capability," according to Kelferd.

The BMD test is part of a partnership between the United States and Japan to develop the Japanese navy's ballistic missile defense systems. The program will supplement the U.S. BMD destroyers and cruisers already deployed in the Pacific with Japanese capabilities.

The AEGIS system is a complete weapons system based off of the AN/SPY-1 phased array automated radar. It is capable of tracking more than 100 targets at once. The command and decision element of its targeting system can interpret and prioritize incoming targets based on range and threat level.

It is primarily used for targeting the MK. 41 Vertical Launch System, which can launch surface-to-air missiles like the Standard-class and the Tomahawk cruise missile. The variants of the Standard can target everything from ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, aircraft, and surface vessels.