Ireland Degges
Leidos has delivered the initial round of Enduring Shield launchers ordered under a U.S. Army contract.
Produced by the company’s Dynetics subsidiary, the launchers are ground-based, mobile systems designed to address threats associated with combat cruise missiles and unmanned aircraft to safeguard civilian and military infrastructure, Leidos announced from Huntsville, Alabama, on Thursday.
“We know how vital Enduring Shield is to our Army customer, our warfighters and our nation,” said Larry Barisciano, weapon system operations manager at Leidos.
He added that the team is proud to have achieved this goal and is anticipating future achievements in testing and fielding the systems.
Along with its protective capabilities, Enduring Shield is intended to close the gap between tactical short range air defense and strategic systems and can be incorporated with the Integrated Air and Missile Defense Battle Command System. The technology represents a part of the Army’s Indirect Fire Protection Capability Increment 2 program, which aligns with the broader Department of Defense layered defense strategy. Systems provided in this round of deliveries are all fieldable prototypes that can be deployed if necessary.
Dynetics serves as the prime contractor under the Enduring Shield contract, which was issued in September 2021, and deliveries were originally scheduled for March 2023. Delays in the supply chain and other challenges extended this timeline.
The Developmental Test leg of the program will start in 2024, and the next stage of deliveries is planned for 2025.
