Beefing up Defense Against Chinese ‘Carrier Killers’
By Tamir Eshel -
Dec 15, 2016
The Missile Defense Agency and sailors aboard USS John Paul Jones (DDG 53), an Aegis baseline 9.C1 equipped destroyer, successfully fired a salvo of two SM-6 Dual I missiles against a complex medium-range ballistic missile target, demonstrating the Sea-Based Terminal endo-atmospheric defensive capability and meeting the test’s primary objective. Photo: MDA
The U.S. Navy yesterday performed a first intercept test of a medium-range ballistic missile target using the new Standard Missile 6 dual mission (SM-6 Dual I) interceptor. The missile was launched by USS John Paul Jones (DDG 53), an Aegis baseline 9.C1 equipped destroyer, supporting the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) AEGIS Missile Defense tests. “The test met its primary objective,” the agency said in a statement. Program officials will continue evaluating system performance based upon telemetry and other data obtained during the test.
“This test demonstrated the capabilities MDA and the Navy are delivering to our fleet commanders,” said MDA Director Vice Adm. Jim Syring. “The SM-6 missile and the Aegis Weapon System continue to prove that they are critical components of our nation’s multilayered, robust ballistic missile defense system.”
http://defense-update.com/20161215_sm6_dual_vs_mrbm.html
