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The Naval Air Systems Command wants to increase the range of a Raytheon-built Sidewinder missile by 60 percent to meet the needs of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, Flightglobal reported Thursday.
Dave Majumdar writes the modified AIM-9X Block III will focus on tweaks to the rocket motor and missile power to strengthen the Lockheed Martin-built plane’s weapons capacity for beyond visual range.
NAVAIR intends for the modified Block III to include an insensitive munitions solution andl retain the Block II’s other features such as an advanced medium-range air-to-air missile-derived datalink, the report said.
Mamjudar reports engineering and development for the new Block III is slated start in 2016, with initial testing slated for 2018 and operational testing scheduled for 2020.
