Lockheed Martin announced Monday it has successfully conducted an Enhanced Blast Warhead flight test of its Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System unitary rockets recently at White Sands Missile Range, N.M. All test objectives were achieved, the company said in a news release.
The system is designed to attack targets more than 70 kilometers (43.4 miles) away with high precision. It is a low-cost, low-risk program intended to assist in filling battlefield capability gaps. GMLRS also is a Modular Force system with a flexible design intended to accommodate future growth.
The LM-funded test demonstrated "a higher degree of lethality than the existing GMLRS unitary warhead, while maintaining the weapon's precision capabilities," the release said. "The GMLRS Unitary EBW variant expands the current target sets of the system, while preserving its ability to limit collateral damage."
In addition, the EBW variant has been specifically designed for use in urban battlefields, the release said.
"Due to its over-pressurization design, the Enhanced Blast Warhead variant of the GMLRS Unitary will devastate enclosed structures with minimum collateral damage," said Al Duchesne, LM Missiles and Fire Control's director of MLRS rocket programs. "GMLRS Unitary has quickly been established as the weapon of choice for deep-strike precision fire in urban and mountainous environments."
