US Air Force blows up a target with a cruise missile from a cargo plane
By Stephen Losey
Friday, Dec 17
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Air Force on Thursday destroyed a target in the Gulf of Mexico with a cruise missile launched from the back of a cargo aircraft, marking the first live-fire test of its Rapid Dragon program.
The final flight test of Rapid Dragon, which took place at the overwater test range at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida, marks a step forward in the Air Force Strategic Development Planning and Experimentation office’s “bomb bay in a box” effort to develop a palletized munition system.
The Air Force Research Laboratory said in a Thursday release the program could lead to the U.S. and allies being able to turn cargo aircraft into heavily armed bomb trucks, as well as give combatant commanders more firepower to turn on enemy targets from a safe distance.
https://www.defensenews.com/training-sim/2021/12/17/us-air-force-blows-up-a-target-with-a-cruise-missile-from-a-cargo-plane/
