Raytheon and Lockheed Martin, who together form the Javelin joint venture, have recently completed production of its first F-Model of the anti-tank missile, the latest variant that will be delivered to the Army.
In a statement presented Wednesday, Javelin Joint Venture vice president and Lockheed Martin Javelin program director David Pantano said that the F-Model combines multiple features such as blast fragmentation and high-explosive anti-tank into a single warhead.
“We’re helping prepare our warfighters for any mission by reducing the need for different rounds for different targets.” he added.
The missile has a range of 65 meters up to 4 kilometers “in most operational conditions,” according to the companies officials.
The Defense News has reported that the new model, also known as FGM-148F, has an advanced multipurpose warhead that combines charges to defeat explosive-reactive armor, and it has a fragmenting steel case for striking unarmored and lightly armored targets, according to the team. Its new command launch unit boasts a reduction in weight and an improved target tracker.
Javelin has been used extensively in combat operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. U.S. and coalition forces have used the Javelin in more than 5,000 engagements since its deployment in 1996.
With orders for more than 45,000 Javelin missiles, the system is expected to be in the U.S. military’s operational inventory through 2050. As such, Javelin is subject to continual upgrades to retain overmatch against emerging threats and to support evolving operational needs.
As Inside Defense reported, the companies expect to deliver the F model to the Army this fall, following final verification testing. They are under contract to deliver 511 missiles as the first lot of production.
