Northrop Grumman Corporation officials said an Integrated Battle Command System (IBCS) flight test resulted in the Army intercepting a tactical ballistic missile (TBM) and a cruise missile target.
“These two back-to-back successful test events are a testament to the commitment and partnership between the great men and women of the Army’s operational and acquisition communities and Northrop Grumman’s program team,” Kenn Todorov, vice president and general manager, combat systems and mission readiness, Northrop Grumman, said. “We are committed to the mission of the U.S. Army and look forward to continuing that partnership in getting the game-changing IBCS capability into production and fielded.”
The missiles were part of the second of two live-fire tests during the Army’s IBCS Limited User Test (LUT) at White Sands Missile Range, N.M., demonstrating the system’s ability to acquire, track, identify and engage diverse targets from various locations, speeds, and altitudes.
“We need this weapon system in order to maintain a technological advantage in the future,” Secretary of the Army Ryan McCarthy said during a recent visit to Northrop Grumman’s Huntsville Manufacturing Facility to thank the IBCS team. “It’s not a question of whether or not we might get there; we have to get there.”
Maj. Gen. Rob Rasch, Army Program executive officer, Missiles and Space, said it has been amazing to watch soldiers’ ability to successfully track, engage and destroy multiple targets in a highly-complex live-fire operational test.
“As we continue to fine-tune system performance in order to fully demonstrate system requirements in the Initial Operational Test & Evaluation in Fiscal Year 2022, we maintain high confidence for success due to the great leaders and soldiers of the 3-43, who will ultimately become the first-ever IBCS-enabled battalion,” he said.