US Army's M-SHORAD System Renamed and Its Quantity Potentially Increased from 312 to 361.

The U.S. Army celebrates its 249th anniversary, marking the occasion by officially renaming its short-range air defense system (M-SHORAD) to "Sergeant Stout." This name change honors Sgt. Mitchell William Stout, the only air defense artilleryman in the Army to receive the Medal of Honor. Sgt. Stout heroically sacrificed his life during the Vietnam War on March 12, 1970, by protecting his comrades from a grenade explosion. However, the name change isn't the only significant update; the U.S. Army might increase the number of these vehicles from 312 to 361.
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The M-SHORAD has been renamed Sergeant Stout and was recently presented at the Eurosatory show in Paris. (Picture source: Army Recognition)

"Stout ran toward the grenade, picked it up, held it close to his body, and began to exit the bunker," explained the Army's chief of acquisition, Doug Bush. "Upon reaching the door, the grenade exploded, and he shielded his comrades from the blast with his body, thus protecting them from injury or death."

This name change follows last year's renaming of the Mobile Protected Firepower (MPF) "light tank" to the M10 Booker combat vehicle, with more renaming planned in the future.

The Army has approved the deployment of 162 Sergeant Stout systems to support the training and equipping of four battalions, with three units already equipped. According to Brig. Gen. Frank Lozano, program executive officer for missiles and space, the number of systems could increase from 312 to 361 to equip four National Guard battalions.

The Sergeant Stout system, based on the Stryker A1 vehicle, is designed to counter various aerial threats, including unmanned aerial systems and rotary- and fixed-wing aircraft. General Dynamics Land Systems leads the integration, incorporating the mission equipment package from Leonardo DRS, the Reconfigurable Integrated-weapons Platform (RIwP) turret from Moog, and the multi-mission hemispheric radar from Rada USA.

The initial RIwP configuration includes a modified M299 launcher for two Longbow Hellfire missiles, a Raytheon Stinger Vehicle Universal Launcher (SVUL) for four surface-to-air missiles, the Northrop Grumman 30mm Bushmaster XM914 cannon, and a 7.62mm M240 machine gun. This configuration is subject to updates based on soldier feedback and emerging threats, particularly from conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East.

The Army plans progressive updates based on soldier feedback, which has already led to changes such as repositioning a switch on the manual controller to a touch interface. A significant planned update is the integration of the next-generation short-range interceptor, currently competing to replace the FIM-92 Stinger missile.

In addition to the Sergeant Stout, the Army is developing other M-SHORAD initiatives. These include a 50-kilowatt laser prototype mounted on the Stryker and capabilities for the M-SHORAD "increment 4," which could be integrated on common light tactical vehicles or robots like the Small Multipurpose Equipment Transport.