Raytheon's Excalibur Soon to Become a Naval Projectile with the N5 Variant

: Posted On Thursday, 01 October 2015 09:38

Naval Defense Industry News - USA

Raytheon's Excalibur Soon to Become a Naval Projectile with the N5 Variant

A combat-proven projectile will soon become naval ammunition. Raytheon has invested resources in transforming the Excalibur from land-based into naval-based applications. The new Excalibur N5 has been recently tested at Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona.

Raytheon's Excalibur N5 round showcased during Euronaval 2014

Excalibur Ib has been widely used in combat operations from the US Army, USMC and international customers, with pinpoint accuracy. The N5 is a 127mm (5-inch) diameter projectile that will increase the range of naval guns threefold.

According to Duane Gooden, VP of Raytheon's Land Warfare Systems, the "Excalibur N5's range, precision and lethality will revolutionize naval gunfire and increase the offensive firepower of our Navy's destroyers and cruisers. This demonstration showcases the N5's maturity as a proven low-risk solution, and is ready for the Navy now".

Duane Goodman has stressed that the company continues to invest in the Excalibur program development by adding a fire-and-forget, dual-mode seeker. Thus, naval guns will become effective in modern era surface operations.

Navies around the world have a need to provide fire support to ground troops in amphibious operations and at the same time protect themselves and the fleet from asymmetric threats, such as high-speed and small boats. Raytheon's Excalibur N5 is ideal countering such threats, adding a combat-proven weapon in a vessel's array of capabilities.