Secretive Long Range Attack Missile For Marine AH-1s Is Now Being Flight Tested
The Long Range Attack Missile, based on an unknown Air Force weapon, will help ensure Marine AH-1Zs stay relevant in future high-end fights.
BY
JOSEPH TREVITHICK
|
PUBLISHED MAY 2, 2024 8:58 PM EDT
The Marine Corps is now flight testing a new secretive stand-off missile for its AH-1Z Viper attack helicopters.
JOSEPH TREVITHICK
The U.S. Marine Corps is transforming an unspecified U.S. Air Force missile into a weapon that will give its AH-1Z Viper attack helicopters the ability to strike moving targets on land and at sea 150 nautical miles away. This is exponentially further than the Vipers can reach with their existing air-to-surface munition options. The service has started flight testing this weapon, dubbed the Long Range Attack Missile (LRAM), and plans to conduct the first live-fire launch in Fiscal Year 2025.
Marine Col. Eric Ropella, head of Naval Air Systems Command's (NAVAIR) Expeditionary and Maritime Aviation-Advanced Development Team (XMA-ADT), shared new details about the secretive LRAM effort with The War Zone and other attendees at the annual Modern Day Marine exposition earlier today. The Marine Corps resides within the Department of the Navy and NAVAIR serves as the central manager for aviation and other related programs both services.
"So take everything that you know about an AH-1 and [the] ordnance that it can throw off of it, and exceed that range by a lot, and you will get LRAM," Ropella said by way of introduction.
https://www.twz.com/air/secretive-long-range-attack-missile-for-marine-ah-1s-is-now-being-flight-tested
