Raytheon’s multi-spectral guidance sensor for use on the company’s Small Diameter Bomb II design recently exceeded performance targets in laboratory testing, announced the company Monday. The tri-mode seeker head combines millimeter-wave radar, imaging infrared, and laser guidance to maximize effectiveness against all manner of targets in all weather. The sensor’s test performance validated Raytheon’s choice of an un-cooled IR sensor over a more complex and costly cooled unit, said company officials. “We kept SDB II affordable by designing it to meet—not exceed—government requirements. The fact that the uncooled IIR sensor surpasses design specifications is a win for the warfighter and the taxpayer,” said Harry Schulte, vice president of air warfare systems. Raytheon won the contract to build the bomb in August 2010.
As Hurricane Melissa hammers the Caribbean, the U.S. Air Force’s “Hurricane Hunters” are busy flying into the massive Category 4 storm to collect atmospheric data—with one experiencing greater than expected turbulence Oct. 28.
