Paveway IV precision guided weapon tests successful

The Paveway IV dual-mode GPS/INS laser guided bomb moved a step closer to active service when it was successfully dropped from a Royal Air Force Harrier GR9 in a test over the U.K. Ministry of Defence’s Aberporth Range in Wales earlier this week. The Paveway IV is developed from the foundation of the combat-proven Enhanced Paveway II, the most widely used precision munition in Operation Iraqi Freedom, with more than 8,700 dropped so far. The Paveway IV offers expanded capabilities that include the highly lethal penetrating 500-pound MK82 warhead, height-of-burst sensor, advanced programmable fuze, in-weapon LAR (launch acceptability region) generation and advanced guidance algorithm that takes full advantage of the new warhead while maximising its fly-out performance.

Paveway IV also features MEMS IMU (microelectro-mechanical space system inertial measurement unit) that provides required accuracy using a more compact, less expensive system. Also featured is the RAPToR (Raytheon Anti-jam Protection Technology Receiver), the most advanced military GPS technology available. Production deliveries are scheduled to begin in September and the unit is due to enter service with the British Royal Air Force in 2007.

Paveway IV is the next generation of the Paveway family of precision guided munitions and is jointly developed by Raytheon Systems Limited (RSL) in the U.K. and Raytheon Missile Systems in the United States to meet the U.K.’s Precision Guided Bomb requirement. Raytheon’s legacy of more than 35 years of precision guided bomb development and manufacturing experience has resulted in more than 250,000 Paveway precision guided weapons delivered to the U.S. and more than 35 allied nations for use on 25 different aircraft.