US Air Force wants drone-ready missiles half the size of today’s Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile
The US Air Force wants missiles small enough for drones but powerful enough for modern combat.
The US Air Force (USAF) is looking at new options for air-to-air missiles. It’s seeking cheaper, smaller, long-range missiles suitable for its new Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) drones.
In a recently published request for information (RFI), the Air Force Materiel Command outlined proposals for two types of required missiles. These reflect ongoing changes in real-world battlefields.
As drones become ubiquitous on the battlefield, the USAF is increasingly searching for countermeasures.
The USAF’s new missile request
The first missile outlined in the Air Force Materiel Command’s RFI is a low-cost weapon that would be similar in size to the Raytheon AIM-120 Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM).
This would “provide a low-cost solution with maximum range,” the RFI explained. It would arm the F-16 and F-15E, reflecting the US military’s desire to field longer-range AAMs.
The RFI also calls for a missile roughly half the size of the AMRAAM. This would “double aircraft loadout while maximizing range in the design.”
A low-cost weapon half the size of an AMRAAM would greatly increase the air-to-air missile capacity for CCAs.
According to a report from The War Zone, the RFI suggests that the missiles the Air Force seeks will prioritize range and affordability above agility. The Air Force also seeks to “maximize reuse of existing components” to achieve that affordability.