The Army is looking to 2023 to field initial capabilities for its major long-range precision fires (LRPF) programs, including the Precision Strike Missile (PrSM) and a hypersonic strategic weapon, while acknowledging upcoming challenges to ensure mobility for the signature systems and finalize plans for a first-of-its kind auto-loader.
Col. John Rafferty, director of the LRPF Cross-Functional Team, told attendees at a Thursday CSIS event in 2023 the Army will deliver an initial capability for the PrSM missile, roll out a technology demonstration for the Strategic Long Range cannon program and field the first battalion with the Extended Range Cannon Artillery capability.
“2023 is a big year for us, and, like I said, there isn’t a moment to lose,” Rafferty said.
PrSM is the Army’s program to replace its legacy ATACMS missiles, with Raytheon [RTN] and Lockheed Martin [LMT] competing to deliver the new weapon set to reach ranges of 499 kilometers.
Rafferty said a downselect decision is set for 2021, with the first flight tests for PrSM to start this November with one vendor, followed by a test with the second vendor in December.
Flight tests, originally scheduled to begin this summer, were pushed back due to a technical issue with one of the vendors that caused the delay, Rafferty said.
“There were a couple of technical issues that caused us to delay about 90 days for the test flight. It puts both our competitors on the same path again. There was a mishap at a facility that caused some of the delay, followed my Mother Nature that made the repair of that facility near impossible for a period of time,” Rafferty said.
The PrSM program, which was accelerated from 2027 to 2023, may also see potential adjustments as the U.S. readies to pull out of the INF treaty with Russia, allowing the Army to explore extending the range of the missile beyond 499 km.
“I’m going to beat someone to the INF question. We’re expecting the cooling off period to end sometime soon, and if it does and when we’re directed we’ll look at adjusting the objective [range] requirement for the PrSM missile,” Rafferty said, adding that both vendors have indicated they’re capable of meeting requirements for extended ranges.
The Army’s strategic fires project consists of the Strategic Long Range Cannon and Long Range Hypersonic Weapon (LRHW) programs, which Rafferty noted are both in the process of finalizing operational requirements including intended levels of mobility.
“We see the Long Range Hypersonic Weapon being used against the fixed-site strategic infrastructure, hardened targets, and the strategic cannon delivering a volume of more affordable projectiles against the area targets,” Rafferty said.
LRHW is currently being worked under the Army’s Rapid Capabilities and Critical Technologies Office, with an initial prototype capability set to roll out in FY ’23.
Rafferty said the ERCA program to upgrade the Army’s self-propelled howitzer to reach ranges of up to 70 km and deliver six to 10 rounds per minute is on pace to reach an initial capability in 2021 before fielding to the first battalion in 2023.
Last week, BAE Systems received $45 million for work on ERCA prototype integration (Defense Daily, July 15).
The LRPF CFT is currently working through finalizing design plans for an ERCA auto-loader while ensuring the system retains mobility after upgrading the howitzer’s current .39 caliber-length cannon to a .58-caliber length capability.
“I’m very confident in 2023 for the Increment 1, as we call it, with the .58-caliber gun tube. We have a long way to go for 2024 and getting the auto-loader,” Rafferty said. “It’s important to remember we don’t have one now, so we shouldn’t kid ourselves into thinking this is going to be an easy challenge to overcome.”
To test ERCA’s mobility, the Army recently ran the self-propelled howitzer with the extended gun tube through a mobility characterization site at Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland, according to Rafferty.
“What they found is there wasn’t significant loss of mobility. It can get loaded on and off the C-17, they did that there,” Rafferty said, while adding there were challenges navigating up slopes and adjustments could be made for the cannon to travel in a more elevated position.