The US Air Force's goal is to develop a new class of precision air-launched missiles for Ukraine.
This information was reported by Aviation Week, URA-Inform reports.
We are talking about Extended-Range Attack Munition (ERAM). The service first issued a request for information in January for the Extended-Range Attack Munition (ERAM), aimed at a quickly developed low-cost air-launched munition that can fly 250 nautical miles (288 miles).
It notes that 16 unnamed companies expressed interest. The following request for information, issued July 10 by the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center's Long Range Systems Division, Weapons Directorate, explicitly states that ERAM is intended for Kyiv's fight against Moscow.
«This ammunition is critical to accelerating Ukraine's ability to effectively meet the needs of warfighters and is an affordable, mass-produced weapon that can be produced on a large scale», — the statement said.
The latest request for information states that the procurement of ERAM will be carried out in phases with the goal of prototyping and adapting a commercial, autonomous, modular open architecture vehicle «that can provide affordable impact on long distances».
What ERAM Ammunition Can Do
Minimum requirements outlined in January indicate that ERAM will be a 500-pound class munition equipped with a warhead capable of exploding and breaking apart from open targets, including armored targets. ERAM requires a minimum speed of Mach 0.6 and a range of over 250 nautical miles, although it is not specified whether the munition must be powered. It must navigate without GPS and land at least half of the munitions within 10 meters (33 feet) of the aiming point.
The Air Force's ERAM development is one of the Pentagon's countless attempts to create the latest low-cost air-launched munitions. Earlier this year, the Navy also published requirements for the Multi-Mission Affordable Capacity Effector, a 75-pound, relatively cheap munition that is small enough for the F-35C to carry four missiles in its weapons bay.
Recall earlier it was reported that Ukraine will win – Biden made an unexpected statement about the war.