In a first, the U.S. Army and Lockheed Martin fired two new Precision Strike Missiles, or PrSMs, in a salvo test shot as part of production qualification flight testing at White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico, Lockheed announced.
The testing proved PrSM’s capability to be fired one after another from the M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System, or HIMARS, launcher, per Army doctrine that requires two missiles to be fired at a target in operations in order to effectively guarantee hitting an incoming threat target.
Additionally, the test included having an operator in the cab to prove out soldier safety requirements during firing for the first time.
The two PrSM missiles “in a mid-range flight against a target set” were able to prove “accuracy and readiness,” Lockheed said.
The first set of PrSMs was delivered to the Army in December 2023 to begin replacing the legacy Army Tactical Missile System.
The missile — which can launch from both the HIMARS and the M270A2 Multiple Launch Rocket System — will be critical to the service as it seeks a deep-strike capability that can counter Russian and Chinese technologies. Both European- and Indo-Pacific-based U.S. commanders have been eager to receive the capability that can hit targets at standoff locations greater than 400 kilometers (249 miles).
This summer, the Army fired its PrSM from the Pacific island of Palau and engaged a moving target at sea, marking the first time the weapon had been used outside of American-based testing sites.
The Army is planning capability improvements in subsequent increments, including an enhanced seeker to better defeat moving targets at sea as well as technology to provide increased lethality and extended range. The priority for the PrSM in the near term is to pursue a maritime, ship-killing capability.
Lockheed and an RTX and Northrop Grumman team will compete to develop a subsequent increment called the Long-Range Maneuverable Fires program, which focuses on dramatically extending the range of the missile, possibly from its planned 499 kilometers (310 miles) to more than double that distance.
America’s 2019 withdrawal from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty with Russia has allowed the Army to develop the missile to fly farther. The treaty prevented the development of missiles with ranges between 499 kilometers and 5,000 kilometers (3,107 miles).
In October 2021, the Army conducted a long-range flight test of PrSM that is believed to have exceeded the current range requirement of 499 kilometers.
The Army and Lockheed have several more tests lined up, and the service will begin user testing in December. The service is expected to reach a production decision for the first PrSM variant by the end of 2025.
Jen Judson is an award-winning journalist covering land warfare for Defense News. She has also worked for Politico and Inside Defense. She holds a Master of Science degree in journalism from Boston University and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Kenyon College.