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Kongsberg Ready to Answer the US Navy OTH ASM Requirement for the LCS with "Bolt On" NSM

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Sea-Air-Space 2015 - Kongsberg NSM
 
 
 
Kongsberg Ready to Answer the US Navy OTH ASM Requirement for the LCS with "Bolt On" NSM
 
At the Navy League’s 2015 Sea-Air-Space Exposition which was held last week near Washington DC, Kongsberg was showcasing some new Freedom class and Independence class LCS models fitted with eight Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) each. These two models appear to be Kongsberg's "Bolt On" solution to the US Navy new need for an Over The Horizon (OTH) Anti-Ship Missile (ASM).
     
At the Navy League’s 2015 Sea-Air-Space Exposition which was held last week near Washington DC, Kongsberg was showcasing some new Freedom class and Independence class LCS models fitted with eight Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) each. These two models illustrate Kongsberg's "Bolt On" solution to the US Navy new need of an Over The Horizon (OTH) Anti-Ship Missile (ASM) for the LCS/Frigate Surface Warfare Mission Package.
     
At the Navy League’s 2015 Sea-Air-Space Exposition which was held last week near Washington DC, Kongsberg was showcasing some new Freedom class and Independence class LCS models fitted with eight Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) each. These two models illustrate Kongsberg's "Bolt On" solution to the US Navy new need of an Over The Horizon (OTH) Anti-Ship Missile (ASM) for the LCS/Frigate Surface Warfare Mission Package.Freedom class LCS scale model with 8x NSM launchers fitted forward as seen on Kongsberg booth during Sea Air Space 2015.
     
One year ago during Sea Air Space 2014, Kongsberg was already showcasing what we described at the time as "armed to the teeth" LCS with over 18x launchers each similar to those found on the Skjold class corvettes of the Royal Norwegian Navy.

The "Bolt On" solution, while more conservative and simpler, was recently validated with a live launch: "We proved it could be done in less than 3 months" Hans Kongelf, Vice President of Missile Systems at Kongsberg, told us during Sea Air Space 2015. He was referring to the very short time the Kongsberg team needed to fit an NSM system on board USS Coronado (LCS 4) and perform a successful test with the US Navy in September last year.
     
An F/A-18E Super Hornet fitted with two LRASM missiles.
     
An F/A-18E Super Hornet fitted with two LRASM missiles.Independence class LCS scale model with 8x NSM launchers fitted forward as seen on Kongsberg booth during Sea Air Space 2015.
     
Asked about the main strengths of the NSM, Hans Kongelf gave Navy Recognition three key points:
- Defense penetration capabilities thanks to its stealth, extremely low sea-skimming flight profile and high G maneuvers.
- Target recognition: Each NSM is fitted with a library of ship profiles to recognize each ship classes.
- NSM is available today, it is in production, fielded by the Royal Norwegian Navy, the Polish Navy and selected by Royal Malaysian Navy (ed. note: as we recently reported)
     
At the Navy League’s 2015 Sea-Air-Space Exposition which was held last week near Washington DC, Kongsberg was showcasing some new Freedom class and Independence class LCS models fitted with eight Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) each. These two models illustrate Kongsberg's "Bolt On" solution to the US Navy new need of an Over The Horizon (OTH) Anti-Ship Missile (ASM) for the LCS/Frigate Surface Warfare Mission Package.NSM model on Kongsberg booth at Sea Air Space 2015
     
Right before Sea Air Space 2015, Raytheon and Kongsberg announced they formed a teaming agreement for the NSM. The pact represents a second step in the companies' efforts to offer world-class Offensive Anti-Surface Warfare (OASuW) solutions to the many governments interested in this warfare mission. Raytheon and Kongsberg formed a similar agreement last year to develop the Joint Strike Missile, the air-launched version of the NSM.

Link to NSM technical datasheet