Military

Boeing to develop supersonic ramjet missile demonstrator for US Navy

SPEAR will be used to develop supersonic missiles to be deployed aboard US Navy carriers like the USS Gerald R Ford
US Navy
SPEAR will be used to develop supersonic missiles to be deployed aboard US Navy carriers like the USS Gerald R Ford
US Navy

Boeing has been awarded a US$30-million contract to develop a supersonic ramjet missile demonstrator in cooperation with the US Navy’s Air Warfare Center Weapons Division. The Supersonic Propulsion Enabled Advanced Ramjet (SPEAR) flight demonstrator will be used to help determine technical requirements for future missiles to defend Navy carriers.

One of the few constants when it comes to naval warfare is that nothing is constant. Just as the balance of power between nations is always in flux, the threats faced by naval forces and the ways to counter them are ever-changing.

One example is the aircraft carrier. These giant floating airfields are almost the definition of great power and status in the 21st century. They allow nations to operate around the globe – often completely independent of local bases, as they provide both the means to project power and to give immediate and substantial aid in the event of natural disasters.

The problem is that although carriers are formidable weapons, they are also vulnerable, which is why they are always accompanied by a carrier group of ships to provide protection against submarines, missiles, and aircraft.

Even the fighter wing of a carrier must adapt to threats. A modern fighter plane may pack quite a punch, but modern air defenses mean that aircraft are being designed more and more, not as dog-fighters, but as stand-off platforms to launch attacks from over the horizon.

This is part of the rationale behind SPEAR – to make strike fighters operating off carriers more lethal and able to counter threats without exposing themselves to unnecessary danger. Supersonic ramjet missiles aren't new. They've been deployed since the 1940s, but a solid-fuel ramjet missile like the MBDA Meteor that can be carried by strike fighters is a relatively new development.

For the new contract, Boeing and the Navy will produce a SPEAR demonstrator by late 2022 that will provide the technical information required for practical carrier-based land and sea strike weapons systems.

"The SPEAR flight demonstrator will provide the F/A-18 Super Hornet and carrier strike group with significant improvements in range and survivability against advanced threat defensive systems," says Steve Mercer, Boeing’s SPEAR program manager. "We have a talented team of engineers to meet the challenging technical demands and schedule timeline that the SPEAR program requires. We look forward to working with Navy experts to advance technologies for the Navy’s future capabilities."

Source: Boeing

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4 comments
reholmes
Worked at The Marquardt Corporation in the '50s developing a supersonic ramjet. Deja vu
majorkong
Sadly the US aircraft carrier depicted is not the Ford but the USS Enterprise CVN-65 'The Big E', which is no longer in service. However, there will be a new USS Enterprise CVN-80 'The Big E', the third Ford Class carrier, whose keel was laid in 2017, and is slated to begin ops in 2028. She will be the ninth US Naval Vessel to carry that storied name.
JeffK
majorkong - You beat me to it. Even without the original phased array radar "beehive" that she wore when my squadron deployed aboard her twice to WestPac in the early seventies, Enterprise was unmistakable. Looking forward to seeing her namesake.
Polaris1983
What about ship defenses against parasitic small boats and mini submersibles like in WW2 in the Mediterranean and pacific?