Air-to-air missiles can significantly increase the range. Yesterday, September 21, the portal thedrive.com He reported that at the Air, Space & Cyber Conference event, Boeing presented the concept of a two-stage LRAAM munition.
The Long-Range Air-to-Air Missile or LRAAM is an extended-range air-to-air missile concept. Its key feature is the presence of an additional stage, which is separated at a certain section of the flight, providing increased maneuverability and speed on approach to the target compared to a single-stage rocket.
Mock-up of the LRAAM rocket
Image source: thedrive.com
The main air-to-air missile of the US Air Force is the AIM-120 AMRAAM (Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile), which entered service in 1991. It is designed to hit air targets beyond the line of sight. The range of the AIM-120 according to unofficial data is from 75 to 100 miles (up to 160 km). At the same time, the US Air Force is developing a new type of ammunition under the JATM program, called the AIM-260.
Boeing indicates that LRAAM will not compete with JATM. Most likely, the new munition was created as part of the Long Range Engagement Weapon (LREW) program, announced by the US Air Force to search for new missiles that can provide a significantly greater range and speed of hitting a target than the ammunition in service, while remaining compact enough to fit into the internal compartments of "stealth".
