Mary-Louise Hoffman
The U.S. Missile Defense Agency has evaluated a ground-based Aegis ballistic missile defense system in conjunction with a Raytheon-built Standard Missile-3 Block IB at an outdoor testing complex in Kauai, Hawaii.
MDA said Thursday the Aegis Ashore system installed at the Pacific Missile Range Facility fired an SM-3 missile at a medium-range BM target that came from C-17 aircraft during the intercept flight test.
An AN/TPY-2 X-band radar worked to help the missile technology to track and engage its target, Raytheon said in a separate release Thursday.
The agency is scheduled to commence a second phase of the European Phased Adaptive Approach for the Aegis Ashore system in Romania by the end of this year, according to Raytheon.
The BMDS Operational Test Agency, U.S. Pacific Command, U.S. European Command and Joint Functional Component Command for Integrated Missile Defense helped MDA conduct the intercept test.
Aegis Ashore is designed to employ configurations of a vertical launch system, fire control technology and a radar found on board Aegis BMD destroyers and cruisers.
