Navy to Conduct Strike Missile Demonstration Aboard LCS 4*

WASHINGTON — The Navy is scheduled to conduct a live-fire demonstration of a Kongsberg-built Naval Strike Missile (NSM) aboard the littoral combat ship USS Coronado (LCS 4) while underway in the Pacific Ocean Sept. 24, a Naval Sea Systems Command spokesman announced in a Sept. 18 release.

The Kongsberg NSM is a long-range precision-strike missile designed to be launched from a variety of ships against a variety of targets. This demonstration is intended to test the capabilities of the Norwegian-made missile from a sea-based platform against a Mobile Ship Target (MST) and provide insights into the weapon’s stated capabilities of increased range and lethality. The Navy does not currently have any acquisition or integration requirements for the NSM aboard any of its ships.

“We saw what the missile could do from a Norwegian ship during RIMPAC [Rim of the Pacific exercise], and now have the opportunity to see it perform from one of our ships,” said RDML Jon Hill, program executive officer, Integrated Warfare Systems. “We’re excited to see what potential the missile has as a possible future warfighting tool for the U.S. Navy.”

The planned live firing demonstration of the NSM will take place under the Foreign Comparative Testing (FCT) program and will act as a demonstration of the ship’s potential to execute an increased anti-surface warfare role. The FCT program is designed to test items and technologies of foreign allies that have a high Technology Readiness Level in order to satisfy valid defense requirements quickly and economically.

The NSM currently is used on Norwegian Nansen Class frigates and Skjold-class missile torpedo boats, and in the Polish Coastal Missile Division. Kongsberg has previously contracted with the U.S. Navy to supply simulation training tools for Navigation, Seamanship, and Shiphandling Training (NSST) programs.

Program Executive Office Integrated Warfare Systems, together with Program Executive Office Littoral Combat Ships, will coordinate the demonstration. In the event of inclement weather or an unfavorable sea state, the demonstration will be conducted Sept. 25.

* Notícia publicada a Sea Power. No és cap novetat que la indústria de defensa Noruega fabrica míssils de gran qualitat, i tampoc és el primer cop que la US Navy s'hi fixat. Les properes proves podrien ser un pas per substituïr els veterans Harpoon