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Sea-Air-Space
2015 - US Navy Railgun |
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US
Navy's Railgun to be test-fired at sea for the first time in late Summer
2016 from JHSV |
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The
U.S. Navy announced today at Sea-Air-Space 2015 it will fire it’s
first-ever Railgun at sea on the Eglin Air Force Base Maritime Test
Range in late Summer of 2016 aboard JHSV5, USNS Trenton. The test will
fire a GPS-Guided Hypervelocity Projectile from a Railgun at a fixed
over-the horizon target. Further, it will validate system performance
models for a dynamic Railgun. US Navy selected the BAE Systems' solution
to perform this first at-sea firing test.
“It’s an over the horizon engagement. We’re firing
on a ballistic trajectory and guiding into intercepting that target”
said US Navy Captain Mike Ziv, program manager directed energy and electronic
warfare. |
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US Navy future
Railgun is intended to be a land- and sea-based system, capable to hit
cruise missiles, as well as aerial and surface targets |
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EM railgun technology
uses an electromagnetic force - known as the Lorentz Force - to rapidly
accelerate and launch a projectile between two conductive rails. This
guided projectile is launched at such high velocities that it can
achieve greater ranges than conventional guns. It maintains enough
kinetic energy that it doesn't require any kind of high explosive
payload when it reaches its target. According to the US Navy, the
Railgun will be capable to hit target at distance reaching 110 nautical
miles, in 32 Mega Joule Railgun configuration (50 nautical miles with
the 20 MJ Railgun variant).
EM railgun technology
will complement current kinetic weapons currently onboard surface
combatants and offer a few specific advantages. Against specific threats,
the cost per engagement is orders of magnitude less expensive than
comparable missile engagements. The projectile itself is being designed
to be common with some current powder guns, enabling the conservation
of expensive missiles for use against more complex threats.
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US Navy plans
first-ever at-sea test of the Railgun aboard JHSV5, USNS Trenton |
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This
demonstration will be the latest in a series of technical maturation
efforts designed to provide an operational railgun to the fleet. Since
2005, the Navy and its partners in industry and academia have been testing
railgun technology at the Naval Surface Warfare Center in Dahlgren,
Va., and the Naval Research Lab where the service has a number of prototype
systems.
The
final operational system will be capable of launching guided, multi-mission
projectiles to a range of 110 nautical miles against a wide range of
threats. The series of tests are designed to capture lessons for incorporation
into a future tactical design and will allow the Navy to best understand
needed ship modifications before fully integrating the technology.
The
Navy is using JHSV as a vessel of opportunity because of its available
cargo and topside space and schedule flexibility. Because JHSVs are
non-combatants, there is no plan to permanently install a railgun on
any ship of the class. A final decision has not been made on which ship
classes will receive a fully operational railgun. |
