Five SM-2 surface-to-air missiles built by Raytheon Co. recently completed five test flights successfully in exercises conducted at sea by the Republic of Korea Navy.
The SM-2 missile allows navies to defend against aircraft and anti-ship missiles as far away as 90 nautical miles and an altitude of 65,000 feet.
In one exercise, Korea tested the missiles’ advanced semi-active radar seeker technology by firing two Block IIIA missiles. Korea destroyed three aerial threats using the Block IIIB variant during a second exercise.
“These successful flight tests add to SM-2’s impressive legacy of more than 2,700 successful firings,” Mitch Stevison, Raytheon Air and Missile Defense Systems vice president, said. “As we begin to produce a new generation of SM-2s, the missile will be in the inventories of navies worldwide for decades to come.”
In response to global demands, Raytheon restarted production of the SM-2 missile line last year with new deliveries scheduled to begin in 2020. The company stopped production in 2013 after international orders were too low to keep the production line going.
New orders include more than 280 SM-2 Block IIIA and IIIB missiles sold to South Korea, Australia, the Netherlands, and Japan.
Previous international customers include Canada, Germany, Spain, and Taiwan.