MGM-140 ATACMS

MGM-140 ATACMS (Army Tactical Missile System)
An ATACMS being launched by an M270 in 2006.
Type Rocket artillery, tactical ballistic missile
Place of origin United States
Service history
Used by United States and South Korea
Wars Persian Gulf War, Iraq War, War in Afghanistan
Production history
Designer Ling-Temco-Vought
Designed 1986
Manufacturer Lockheed Martin
No. built 3,700[1][2]
Specifications ([3][4])
Weight 3,690 pounds (1,670 kg)
Length 13 feet (4.0 m)
Diameter 24 inches (610 mm)
Maximum firing range 190 mi (300 km)
Wingspan 55 inches (1.4 m)
Flight ceiling 160,000 ft (50 km)[5]
Speed In excess of Mach 3 (0.6 mi/s; 1.0 km/s)[5]
Guidance
system
 GPS-aided inertial navigation guidance
Launch
platform
 M270, HIMARS

The MGM-140 Army Tactical Missile System (ATacMS) is a surface-to-surface missile (SSM) manufactured by the American company Lockheed Martin. It has a range of over 100 miles (160 km), with solid propellant, and is 13 feet (4.0 m) high and 24 inches (610 mm) in diameter.

The ATACMS can be fired from multiple rocket launchers, including the M270 Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS), and M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS). An ATACMS launch container has a lid patterned with six circles like a standard MLRS rocket lid.

The first use of the ATACMS in a combat capability was during Operation Desert Storm, where a total of 32 were fired from the M270 MLRS.[6] During Operation Iraqi Freedom more than 450 missiles were fired.[7] As of early 2015, over 560 ATACMS missiles had been fired in combat.[1][2]

Variants

MGM-140A – Block I

Previously M39,[8] unguided missile contains 950 M74 anti-personnel/anti-materiel (APAM) submunitions with a range of 80 miles (128 km).[9]

MGM-140B – Block IA

Previously M39A1,[8] missile uses GPS/INS guidance, carries 275 M74 submunitions and has a 103 miles (165 km) range.[9][10]

MGM-164 ATacMS – Block II

A Block II variant (initially designated MGM-140C or, previously, M39A3[8]) was designed to carry a payload of 13 Brilliant Anti-Tank munitions manufactured by Northrop Grumman. However, in late 2003 the U.S. Army terminated the funding for the BAT-equipped ATACMS and therefore the MGM-164A never became fully operational.[11]

MGM-168 ATacMS – Block IVA

Originally designated Block IA Unitary (MGM-140E), the new Block IVA variant substitutes a 500 pounds (230 kg) unitary HE warhead for M74 bomblets. It uses the same GPS/INS guidance as the MGM-140B. The development contract was placed in December 2000, and flight-testing began in April 2001. The first production contract was awarded in March 2002.[12] The range has been increased to some 190 miles (300 km), limited more by the legal provisions of the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) than technical considerations.

Future

In 2007, the Army terminated the ATACMS program due to cost, ending the ability to replenish stocks. To sustain the remaining inventory, the ATACMS Service Life Extension Program (SLEP) was launched, which refurbishes or replaces propulsion and navigation systems, replaces cluster munition warheads with the unitary blast fragmentation warhead, and adds a proximity fuze option to obtain area effects; deliveries are projected to start in 2018. The ATACMS SLEP is a bridging initiative to provide time to complete analysis and development of a successor capability to the aging ATACMS stockpile, which could be ready around 2022.[13]

In January 2015, Lockheed Martin received a contract to develop and test new hardware for Block I ATACMS missiles to eliminate the risk of unexploded ordnance by 2016.[1][2] The first modernized Tactical Missile System (TACMS) was delivered on 28 September 2016 with updated guidance electronics and added capability to defeat area targets using a unitary warhead without leaving behind unexploded ordnance.[14][15] Lockheed was awarded a production contract for launch assemblies as part of the SLEP on 2 August 2017.[16]

In October 2016, it was revealed that the ATACMS would be upgraded with an existing seeker to enable it to strike moving targets on land and at sea.[17]

In March 2016, Lockheed Martin, Boeing, and Raytheon announced they would offer a missile to meet the U.S. Army's Long Range Precision Fires (LRPF) requirement to replace the ATACMS. The missile will use advanced propulsion to fly faster and further, out to 310 miles (500 km) (limited by the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty),[18] while also being thinner and sleeker, increasing loadout to two per pod, doubling the number able to be carried by M270 MLRS and M142 HIMARS launchers. One contractor is to be downselected in 2018-19 to begin production in 2021-22.[19][20][21]

In 2017, The US Army has given Raytheon the go-ahead to proceed into the technology maturation and risk reduction (TMRR) phase for its Long Range Precision Fires (LRPF) effort, now called DeepStrike.[22]

Operators

Map with MGM-140 operators in blue

Current operators

See also

Comparable missiles

References

  1. 1 2 3 U.S. army awards Lockheed Martin $78 million contract for ATACMS guided missile modernization Archived 2015-01-17 at the Wayback Machine. - Armyrecognition.com, 8 January 2015
  2. 1 2 3 Lockheed Martin Tactical Missile System Upgrades Archived 2015-01-17 at the Wayback Machine. - Armedforces-Int.com, 8 January 2015
  3. ↑ "Wayback Machine" (PDF). archive.org. 30 July 2013. Archived from the original on 30 July 2013. Retrieved 5 April 2018.
  4. ↑ "Lockheed Martin MGM-140 ATACMS". Designation-systems.net. 2006-09-19. Retrieved 2017-01-15.
  5. 1 2 Third Offset Breakthrough: U.S. Army Using Existing Technology to Develop 'Warship-Killer' Missiles - Nationalinterest.org, 2 November 2016
  6. ↑ [Source, DoD, Conduct of the Persian Gulf War", April 1992, p. 753.]
  7. ↑ "Lockheed Martin - Army Tactical Missile System" (PDF). Lockheed Martin. 2006. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-09-27.
  8. 1 2 3 "MGM-140/-164/-168 ATACMS (M39) (United States), Offensive weapons". Jane's Strategic Weapon Systems. Jane's Information Group. Oct 27, 2011. Retrieved 13 July 2012.
  9. 1 2 South Korea Goes Long – Strategypage.com, October 12, 2012
  10. ↑ "Lockheed Martin (LTV) MGM-140 ATACMS". Designation-Systems.net. Retrieved 6 October 2011.
  11. ↑ "Lockheed Martin MGM-164 ATACMS II". Designation-Systems.net. Retrieved 6 October 2011.
  12. ↑ "Lockheed Martin MGM-168 ATACMS IVA". Designation-Systems.net. Retrieved 6 October 2011.
  13. ↑ Capabilities Development for Long Range Precision Fires Archived 2015-03-21 at the Wayback Machine. - ARCIC.Army.mil, 16 May 2014
  14. ↑ Lockheed Martin Delivers First Modernized TACMS Missile to US Army - Armyrecognition.com, 29 September 2016
  15. ↑ Precision fires milestone for US Army - Military1.com, 18 October 2016
  16. ↑ Lockheed Martin contracted to provide new launch system for the ATACMS missile - Armyrecognition.com, 4 August 2017
  17. ↑ Carter, Roper Unveil Army’s New Ship-Killer Missile: ATACMS Upgrade - Breakingdefense.com, 28 October 2016
  18. ↑ Freedberg Jr., Sydney J. (26 April 2016). "Winning The Missile Wars: Army & Navy Tech In HASC NDAA". breakingdefense.com. Breaking Media, Inc. Retrieved 1 May 2016.
  19. ↑ Osborn, Kris. "US Army's New Ground-Launched Missile: Raining Down Death from 500 Kilometers Away". The National Interest. Retrieved 5 April 2018.
  20. ↑ Raytheon to offer new missile design for US Army's Long-Range Precision Fires requirement - Armyrecognition.com, 17 March 2016
  21. ↑ Raytheon to help Army develop new long-range artillery rocket for battlefield fire-support - Militaryaerospace.com, 16 March 2016
  22. ↑ "Raytheon begins TMRR phase for its 'DeepStrike' army LRPF effort - Jane's 360". www.janes.com. Archived from the original on 2018-01-23. Retrieved 5 April 2018.
  23. ↑ "Bahrain Purchases Lockheed Martin's ATACMS Missiles". Lockheed Martin. 20 December 2000. Archived from the original on 12 January 2012.
  24. ↑ "Greece". Lockheed Martin. Archived from the original on 22 February 2012. Retrieved 6 October 2011.
  25. ↑ "Long Reach: Finlands Long-Range Rocket Launchers". defenseindustrydaily.com. Retrieved 5 April 2018.
  26. ↑ "ROK: Army Tactical Missile System (Army TACMS)". GlobalSecurity.org. Retrieved 6 October 2011.
  27. ↑ "Turkey". Lockheed Martin. Retrieved 6 October 2011.
  28. ↑ "Lockheed Martin Successfully Validates ATACMS Missile Long-Term Reliability". Lockheed Martin. 26 February 2009. Archived from the original on 13 December 2010.
  29. ↑ "MGM-140A Block 1". MissileThreat.com. Archived from the original on 14 October 2011. Retrieved 6 October 2011.
  • ATACMS Long-Range Precision Tactical Missile System Lockheed Martin (2011)
  • Army Tactical Missile System Block IA Unitary Lockheed Martin. Retrieved 6 October 2011.
  • Rogers III, Henry T. (16 Jun 2006). "Army Tactical Missile System and Fixed-Wing Aircraft Capabilities in the Joint Time Sensitive Targeting Process". Master thesis. US Army Command and General Staff College. Retrieved 24 April 2012.
  • Precision Guided Missiles and Rockets Program Review U.S. Defense Technical Information Center (14 April 2008).
  • ATACMS / ATACMS Block IA Unitary Deagel.com. Retrieved 6 October 2011.
  • M39 ATMS GlobalSecurity.org. Retrieved 6 October 2011.
  • M39 Army Tactical Missile System (Army TACMS) Federation of American Scientists | FAS.org. Retrieved 6 October 2011.
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