The Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile extended-range variant has completed the Air Force’s initial operational test and evaluation flight testing, announced manufacturer Lockheed Martin on Monday. During these tests, the stealthy cruise missile performed successfully in 20 of 21 flights, according to the company’s May 13 release. “These flight tests demonstrate the operational effectiveness, suitability, and overall mission capability of the JASSM-ER system,” said Dave Melvin, Lockheed Martin’s long-range strike systems program manager. Launched from the B-1B bomber, testers put the missile through the paces “against a wide variety of operationally representative targets” and “in all of the operational flight modes at the full range of release conditions,” states the release. A full-rate production decision for JASSM-ER is expected later this year, said Melvin. (See also JASSM-ER Operational Testing Nears Completion.)
Since President Donald Trump first unveiled his “Golden Dome” missile defense initiative in late January, much of the focus for it has been focused on space—how the Pentagon may deploy dozens, if not hundreds, of sensors and interceptors into orbit to protect the continental U.S. from missile barrages. But the Air…