Raytheon-Boeing Team Responds to Warfighter's Call for Joint Air-To-Ground Missile

HUNTSVILLE, Ala., June 6, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTN) submitted its proposal for the U.S. Army and Navy's Joint Air-to-Ground Missile competition and responded as a prime contractor. Raytheon is teamed with The Boeing Company (NYSE: BA) for the JAGM program.

Raytheon and Boeing have proven capabilities that were showcased in the JAGM technology demonstration phase. The team enters the competition with an unmatched 3-for-3 record of success in the contractually required guided test vehicle flights. One of the reasons for the team's success is the use of a proven, tri-mode seeker incorporating semiactive laser, uncooled imaging infrared and millimeter wave guidance.

"Instead of cobbling together bits and pieces of hardware from legacy programs, we offer a fully integrated tri-mode seeker that provides an exceptionally reliable, low-risk path to engineering and manufacturing development," said Bob Francois, Raytheon vice president of Advanced Missiles and Unmanned Systems. "Rather than complicating matters by using a cooled seeker, we worked in close concert with our customers to determine smarter and simpler ways to arrive at a superior system solution. The uncooled seeker on the Raytheon-Boeing JAGM is just one example of that, and our overall system solution integrates targeting information from powerful aircraft onboard sensors with our advanced seeker to provide exceptional capability."

In addition to achieving a 3-for-3 success rate in government-funded testing, the Raytheon-Boeing team also went 3-for-3 in company-funded testing. Boeing executives attribute part of that success to the team's use of production-ready hardware.

"The team demonstrated that it is possible to give the warfighter a single rocket motor solution capable of withstanding the rigors of fixed- and rotary-wing flight," said Carl Avila, director of Boeing's Advanced Weapons and Missile Systems. "A single rocket motor and uncooled tri-mode seeker provide improved reliability and simplified logistics, while saving the taxpayer money over the life of the program."

JAGM, designed to replace three legacy systems, offers the warfighter improved lethality, range, operational flexibility, supportability and cost savings compared with older, Cold War-era weapons including all variants of the Hellfire missile.

JAGM is scheduled for integration on the Boeing F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet; the Boeing AH-64D Apache Longbow; the MH-60R Seahawk; the AH-1Z Super Cobra; the MQ-1C Gray Eagle; and the OH-58 CASUP Armed Reconnaissance Helicopter.

Raytheon Company, with 2010 sales of $25 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 89 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 72,000 people worldwide.

A unit of The Boeing Company, Boeing Defense, Space & Security is one of the world's largest defense, space and security businesses specializing in innovative and capabilities-driven customer solutions, and the world's largest and most versatile manufacturer of military aircraft. Headquartered in St. Louis, Boeing Defense, Space & Security is a $32 billion business with 66,000 employees worldwide. Follow us on Twitter: @BoeingDefense.

SOURCE Raytheon Company