. Military Space News .
Outside View: The case for JASSM

disclaimer: image is for illustration purposes only
by Steven K. Barnoske
Washington (UPI) Oct 25, 2007
Theodore Gaillard's two-part critique of the U.S. cruise-missile arsenal does a disservice to the nation's armed forces and particularly to the war fighters who count on the capabilities of weapons such as the Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile.

Gaillard cites two principal points to support his premise that further work on JASSM and other subsonic cruise missiles should be halted in favor of a supersonic missile -- a concept still in its earliest stages. One is that subsonic cruise missiles can easily be defeated by enemy air defenses. The other is that these weapons lack sufficient range to be of any real military utility. Both arguments are flawed.

In developing requirements for the competitively procured JASSM, U.S. Air Force planners carefully balanced considerations such as cost, performance and reliability and determined that stealth was of paramount importance -- precisely to enhance the missile's survivability against a range of threats. Extensive testing and modeling has proven that JASSM's stealth capabilities work in extended flights against modern layered, networked air defense systems. Although, understandably, the details of this testing are classified, JASSM's stealth capabilities have never been questioned.

It is true that the baseline JASSM, currently in production, has a range greater than 200 miles. But Gaillard neglected to mention that the Air Force and Lockheed Martin are working on several variants that will significantly extend the missile's range. The government-industry team also is pursuing other critical enhancements to JASSM, taking advantage of the missile's unique open architecture to incorporate new technologies as they become available.

The spiral development process has not been without technical challenges and test failures. While disappointing to the thousands of talented men and women who work on the program, such setbacks are not unexpected -- particularly when one pushes the technology envelope to its limits, as we are doing with JASSM.

Gaillard also conveniently neglected to remind his readers that the entire point of a rigorous test regime such as that to which JASSM has been subjected is to identify, isolate and correct problems that may be created as new capabilities are introduced. Contrary to the impression created by Gaillard, test failures do not mean the entire program is a failure; rather, they mean that the testing process works -- and that more work needs to be done.

Lockheed Martin and the U.S. Air Force are doing just that. Government-industry technical teams have dissected data from test failures, identified root causes and developed corrective action plans that we have validated in a series of laboratory and field tests.

We recently conducted successful ground tests that provide further confidence in the corrective actions. A high-level team of Air Force and Lockheed Martin executives is reviewing these results before flight tests resume. Lockheed Martin is sharing the cost of this effort and has committed to pay for the majority of any fixes that may be required to previously accepted missiles already in inventory.

We have taken a similar collaborative approach in addressing the program's overall cost, which has grown in large part due to the numerous capability enhancements that have been added to JASSM since the contract for the original baseline missile was awarded.

It is important to remember that, even now, JASSM is the lowest-cost cruise missile in the nation's arsenal. It is also the only cruise missile in the world to incorporate state-of-the-art stealth technologies. Without an understanding of just how well JASSM employs these extreme low-observable technologies -- knowledge that understandably is restricted -- one cannot fully appreciate what the missile can do for combatant commanders in the first critical days of a high-threat conflict. We are optimistic that our customer will be able to certify to the U.S. Congress in early 2008 that the JASSM cost and technical issues are under control and that the program should continue.

Are we disappointed that the Air Force has found it necessary to identify potential alternatives to JASSM? Absolutely. But we also understand that the service is doing exactly what any prudent buyer would do. In fact, Lockheed Martin follows exactly the same process with its own suppliers.

We recognize that many competitors and the critics who support them would like to see JASSM fail. Lockheed Martin's JASSM team is determined to frustrate them. Most important, we are committed to continuing to work closely with the Air Force to deliver a system that our nation's war fighters can rely on to take out the most critical targets in the harshest environments.

-- (Steven K. Barnoske is JASSM program director at Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control, prime contractor for JASSM.)

(United Press International's "Outside View" commentaries are written by outside contributors who specialize in a variety of important issues. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of United Press International. In the interests of creating an open forum, original submissions are invited.)

Community
Email This Article
Comment On This Article

Related Links
Learn about missile defense at SpaceWar.com
All about missiles at SpaceWar.com



Memory Foam Mattress Review
Newsletters :: SpaceDaily :: SpaceWar :: TerraDaily :: Energy Daily
XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News


India test fires nuclear-capable missile
New Delhi (AFP) Oct 24, 2007
India on Wednesday test fired its nuclear-capable Agni-1 ballistic missile for the second time in less than a month and said the latest experiment was a "major success."







  • Analysis: U.S. vs. Russia on all fronts
  • Putin boast of 'grandiose' military plans no cause for alarm: Gates
  • USS Fort McHenry Mission To Set Tone For US Africa Command
  • Walker's World: Inflating Russian reality

  • Iran denounces 'hostile' US sanctions
  • US on Iran collision course with new sanctions
  • Japan warns US over North Korea
  • NKorea to beat nuclear disablement deadline: official

  • Outside View: The case for JASSM
  • India test fires nuclear-capable missile
  • Taiwan has not completed cruise missile tests: legislator
  • Russia Announces Successful Topol Ballistic Missile Test

  • BMD Focus: Barak's high-tech optimism
  • Russia not satisfied with US missile shield proposals
  • US can't do anything more for Russia on missile defense: Gates
  • Outside View: Russia, U.S. may deal on BMD

  • Airbus superjumbo makes first commercial flight
  • Airbus superjumbo takes off on first commercial flight
  • Solar Telescope Reaches 120,000 Feet On Jumbo-Jet-Sized Balloon
  • Third Maritime Surveillance System For Canada

  • Boeing Tests HALE Hydrogen Propulsion System Using Ford-Developed Engine
  • Boeing Completes 200th P-8A Live-Fire Shot
  • Orbital Awarded 38 Million Dollar Contract By US Navy For Coyote Sea-Skimming Target Vehicles
  • Global Hawk Passes Fuel Test

  • US diplomatic security chief resigns after Blackwater row
  • US acts to rein in Iraq security firms
  • White House sends Congress expanded war funding request
  • Iraqi President Says Large-Scale Turkish Incursion Impossible

  • Northrop Grumman's Guardian Commercial Airliner Anti-Missile System Achieves 12,000 Operating Hours
  • The Power of Three - Work Starts On Carrier Variant Of F-35 Lightning II
  • QinetiQ Fires Composite 155mm Artillery Munition
  • Boeing Teams With Northrop Grumman To Develop B-52H Core Component Jammer

  • The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2006 - SpaceDaily.AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA PortalReports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additionalcopyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by SpaceDaily on any Web page published or hosted by SpaceDaily. Privacy Statement