The US Army has tested a prototype of the AML unmanned rocket launcher. It is an adapted HIMARS multiple launch rocket system. According to Defense News, during the tests, seven missiles simulating hypersonic PrSM were launched from AML.
The Americans adopted the multiple launch rocket system on the M142 HIMARS wheeled chassis in 2005. It weighs 11 tons and travels at a speed of 85 kilometers per hour. The system can carry six rockets or one MGM-140 tactical ballistic missile. The military is also considering launching a promising tactical hypersonic missile from HIMARS, which is being developed as part of the PrSM project.
The idea of creating an unmanned version of HIMARS has been discussed by the US Army since at least 2019. Such a system has a number of potential advantages. First of all, it will allow units to deploy more rocket launchers without increasing personnel. And if you remove the crew cabin, which is designed for three people, from the system, it will be able to launch missiles with a longer range.
AML is an adapted HIMARS with an electronic digital control system and master-slave technology. This is used in unmanned cargo convoys: the leading truck sets the speed, route and distance, and the wingmen follow it. In the case of AML, the role of the host can be played by HIMARS. The unmanned rocket launcher is equipped with a remote launch tower and a fire control system that is compatible with missiles already in service like the GMLRS and promising models like the PrSM.
Tests of a prototype unmanned rocket launcher were held on June 16 at Fort Sill. They lasted 1.25 hours. In total, seven missiles were launched from AML, simulating the range of hypersonic PrSM-from 500 kilometers. In addition, the military tested the installation with shorter-range missiles.
Simultaneously with the tests, the Command for the Development of Combat Capabilities of the armed forces published a concept video about the AML. In the video, the C-130 transporters land on an island in the Pacific Ocean. From one plane goes AML, and from the other-HIMARS. They work as a team: one system launches a hypersonic PrSM missile, the second — an extended-range PrSM. While the missiles destroy ships and ground targets, HIMARS and AML drive back into the C-130.
Rocket launchers can have a lot of interesting details, but the main thing is the missiles. Earlier, we wrote about the hypersonic missile PrSM, which the US military is developing to replace the outdated ammunition of the ATACMS operational and tactical complexes.
Vasilisa Chernyavtseva
