The U.S. military tests the "Athlon" trayized weapon system
The latest video and photos released by the US Air Force show that it and Low Horse Company comprehensively tested the "Athlon" tray weapon concept at the White Sand Missile Range in New Mexico in August this year, and conducted a preliminary verification of its feasibility.
During the test, the US Air Force used a C-17A "Globemaster III" transport aircraft and a "Hercules" transport aircraft modified EC-130j electronic warfare aircraft to drop the "Athlon" air-launched tray weapon system and complete the missile launch, indicating that the US Air Force has made initial progress in the project.
It is intended to improve the ability to strike
In the past two years, the US Air Force has repeatedly put forward the idea of building an "arsenal aircraft" with military transport aircraft. On this basis, at the end of 2020, the US Air Force launched the "Athlon" tray weapon system concept. The concept envisages the modification of military transport aircraft to carry palletized weapon systems for launching strikes outside enemy areas.
According to reports, in this test, the C-17A transport aircraft and the EC-130J electronic warfare aircraft dropped the "Athlon" palletized weapon system from the "actual combat altitude". The weapon system can carry between 6 and 9 missiles at a time, but only 4 missiles were loaded during the test. After the launch, the Athlon tray weapon system stabilized its attitude with the help of a parachute, and then began to launch rapidly and continuously to test the missile. These test missiles are similar to the extended-range AGM-158b Jasm combined air-to-surface defense out-of-zone missiles and have a range of more than 900 kilometers.
Good adaptability, low cost-effectiveness ratio
According to reports, during the test, ground personnel transmitted target data to the "Athlon" trayted weapon system through satellite communication data links and made data corrections, proving that the system has the ability to receive ground data.
In addition to firing missiles, the Athlon tray weapon system can also launch small drones and recover them after the mission is over. The weapon system has modular characteristics, good adaptability, and it is possible to equip various types of US fighters in the future.
The analysis believes that after a C-17 transport aircraft is equipped with the "Athlon" tray weapon system, its firepower level is theoretically comparable to that of a B-1B bomber. Due to the low difficulty and low cost of retrofitting transport aircraft, this weapon system has the potential for large-scale applications.
However, the debate remains. Opponents believe that the conversion of transport aircraft into bombers will squeeze out the already tight resources of US transport aircraft. In addition, the agm-158b "Jasm" joint air-to-surface defense out-of-zone missile is expensive, relatively inefficient in a large-scale war of attrition, and its range is still within the interception range of heavy fighters, which cannot achieve the purpose of off-zone strike operations. In this way, the development prospects of the "Athlon" tray weapon system remain to be seen. (Cui Xiaoqiao, Li Mengyuan)
Source: China National Defense Daily