BAE Systems wrapped up additional tests of its Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS)-guided counter-drone rockets.
The demonstration saw five 70 mm rockets knocking out various drones, including the 25-50-pound (11.3-23-kilogram) Class-2, which flies over 100 miles (161 kilometers) per hour.
The APKWS kit turns a standard rocket with a 10-pound (4.5-kilogram) warhead into a precision, low-cost, supersonic, “lock-on-after-launch strike weapon,” BAE states.
Rocket Blasts Without Contact
The kit’s proximity/point-detonation fuse enables the rocket to destroy a target without direct contact.
The APKWS-guided rockets are effective against armored, stationary, and moving targets and can be fired from “jets, helicopters, trucks, boats, and weapon stations.”
“Militarized drones are becoming more prevalent in conflicts around the world, and we’re giving our customers an efficient way to counter them without wasting expensive missiles,” BAE Systems Precision Guidance and Sensing Solutions director Greg Procopio said.
“Our tests demonstrate that APKWS guidance kits have the flexibility to engage a variety of targets to meet the evolving mission needs of the warfighter.”