Northrop Grumman has completed an aeroballistic test of a new 50mm projectile for Raid Hunter, its gun-based air-defence system, the company reported. The firing campaign was intended to validate the projectile’s performance and collect flight information needed to advance the munition’s development.
XM913 firing data
Test rounds were fired from an XM913 Chain Gun, according to Northrop Grumman. The company said it obtained high-fidelity flight data from nearly every shot during the test, and that the results matched its pre-test predictions and performance expectations.
The tested munition is under development as a guided, proximity-fuzed 50mm round for Raid Hunter. Northrop Grumman characterized the test as a step forward for that development effort, rather than an announcement of system fielding or operational deployment. The company did not provide further performance measurements, details of the guidance or fuze architecture, a test location, or a timetable for subsequent trials.
Short-range defence role
Raid Hunter is designed as a scalable short-range air-defence system intended to counter mass mixed raids and other aerial threats, Northrop Grumman said. The company describes the gun-based system as a cost-effective option intended to help address gaps in short-range air-defence capability as forces face larger numbers of aerial threats.
Northrop Grumman said the latest test’s flight-data collection and agreement with predicted results provide support for continued work on the 50mm guided, proximity-fuzed projectile within the Raid Hunter programme.
