Raytheon Completes Free Flight of Joint Standoff Weapon Extended Range

NAVAL AIR WARFARE CENTER WEAPONS DIVISION SEA TEST RANGE, Calif., Nov. 2, 2009 /PRNewswire/ -- Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTN) and the U.S. Navy completed the first free-flight demonstration of the Joint Standoff Weapon Extended Range air-to-surface precision guided missile.

The JSOW-ER is a powered variant of the combat-proven glide JSOW. It takes the GPS-inertial navigation system reliability of existing JSOW variants and combines it with the network-enabled maritime-interdiction capabilities currently in development for the JSOW C-1. The JSOW-ER also integrates the Hamilton-Sundstrand TJ-150 engine, currently in production for Raytheon's Miniature Air Launched Decoy.

"JSOW-ER will provide the warfighter with a powered spiral of JSOW C-1, extending the range of the weapon from 70 nautical miles (81 statute miles) to 300 nautical miles (345 statute miles)," said Harry Schulte, vice president of Raytheon Missile Systems Air Warfare Systems' product line. "Because JSOW-ER has the same outer mold lines and mass properties of the glide JSOW, it can be integrated on any aircraft capable of carrying glide JSOW. The cost of integration is negligible and the impact is reduced."

Launched from a U.S. Navy F/A-18E/F fighter aircraft, the JSOW-ER flew more than 260 nautical miles (almost 300 statute miles), meeting all test objectives.

"Though not a program of record, the capability and utility of a powered JSOW was clearly demonstrated by this free-flight demonstration," said Capt. Mat Winter, the U.S. Navy's Precision Strike Weapons program manager.

Raytheon Company, with 2008 sales of $23.2 billion, is a technology and innovation leader specializing in defense, homeland security and other government markets throughout the world. With a history of innovation spanning 87 years, Raytheon provides state-of-the-art electronics, mission systems integration and other capabilities in the areas of sensing; effects; and command, control, communications and intelligence systems, as well as a broad range of mission support services. With headquarters in Waltham, Mass., Raytheon employs 73,000 people worldwide.