Oct 27 2010
Raytheon, specialist in advanced electronics and mission systems integration services, announced that it has successfully flight-tested a 13-pound Small Tactical Munition (STM) laser weapon. The STM is the smallest guided bomb in the Raytheon weapons.
The Small Tactical Munition is designed to be used from unmanned aircraft systems. The GPS-inertial navigation system and dual-mode semiactive laser seeker of the bomb allow the weapon to operate continuously with moving and fixed targets.
Earlier, Raytheon had flight tested two Small Tactical Munition weapons on two individual passes from a Cobra unmanned aircraft system. The GPS-INS directed the weapons to a mid-course position. At this position, the semiactive laser seeker accurately directed the STM device to the target, thereby realizing all the test objectives.
The VP of Advanced Missiles and Unmanned Systems at Raytheon, Bob Francois stated that the existing combat operations indicated the necessity for accurate and compact weapons for remotely piloted aircraft. He added that the STM falls under the list of weapons that fulfill the requirements of a warfighter.