Fire Shadow Production Begins

You can see why I am confused though can’t you? That PR is very mysterious and suggests that the Army are fully trained on it and that the manufacturer has done all they need to.:)

Here is Craig Hoyle’s take on the situation:

http://www.flightglobal.com/blogs/the-dewline/2012/07/hey-whats-that-whistling-sound.html

News from Flight Global:

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So it’s been delivered to the Army and is operational? Just not off to Afghanistan – not necessary?

It is not operational, and there are no plans to make it operational. All that its being delivered is a very small batch of hardware to allow evaluation trials.

Once the forces have had limited hands-on experience, the MoD will use that information in its evaluation of artillery future needs.

Fire Shadow lives on!

News from Flight Global:

http://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/british-army-to-continue-fire-shadow-missile-trials-374485/

So it’s been delivered to the Army and is operational? Just not off to Afghanistan – not necessary?

Or it’s been delivered to the Army, they are happy with it and no one is saying whether it’s being procured? It would be a useful capability for your potential enemy not to know about after all….

According to Jane’s Defence Weekly, the basic problem was that by the time the system arrived in Afghanistan and was made ready for use, the UK forces would be ending their combat role there. So continuing with the deployment plan made little sense.

So the UK will go ahead with planned flight tests in Sweden, but has yet to decide if the system would provide a useful long-term capability as part of the Indirect Fire Precision Attack (IFPA) programme. So unless the answer to that question is positive, the system will not be committed to production.

Hello Mercurius,

I though that you may have some knowledge of the project beyond what has already been stated. But I apologise if that is not the case. We shall know soon enough.

Funny that many here saw a lot of potential for the weapon and the government apparently (to the outsider) do not.

This looks like a job for Mercurius!

What job, specifically? I have no involvement with the programme.

This looks like a job for Mercurius!

Failing that, do you think there is any obvious motivation other than financial?

Conservative Government (sort of), I don’t think they need any motivation other than financial.

This looks like a job for Mercurius!

Failing that, do you think there is any obvious motivation other than financial?

Is there any more information (anywhere you can point us?)

UK Defence Secretary Philip Hammond has cancelled the deployment of the MBDA Fire Shadow loitering munition to Afghanistan because of concerns over the long term future of the weapon system, IHS Jane’s understands. Royal Artillery personnel had been in the final stages of preparing the UK’s first loitering munition for a combat capability demonstration in April 2012 when the plug was pulled on the project as a result of the Ministry of Defence’s annual spending round (PR12)

From an article on Janes website, but I don’t have a subscription so can’t read all of it.

Is there any more information (anywhere you can point us?)

Fireshadow deployment to Afganistan has apparently been cancelled because of questions over it’s long-term future.

😡

It uses the Ultra HIDL (http://www.ultra-cis.com/resourses/Fireshadow%20LM%20-%20secured.pdf). Basically LPI with comms relay for Beyond LoS with mux functionality for multiple weapon control.

At normal operating ranges circa 100km though, barring terrain masking, you are still in LoS at 2000ft from a 10m masthead so predominantly ops seem intended to be LoS until target commit and terminal phase.

What high bandwidth data link does Fire Shadow use for imagery for beyond line of sight operations? Satellite? or daisy-chain from another airborne platform?

Some of the earliest reports of the project gave a range of 150 km, but a figure of 100 km or ‘more than 100 km’ has been quoted in most reports.

UUUMMMMMMMMMMMMMM

So, five years from the first sketches to full production.
Fifteen months from first sketches to first flight.
On time.
On budget.

I am quite sure that somewhere there´s some law forbiding such a sorry state of afairs!

😀

Yes it’s a little odd isn’t it, it does rather seem that the Team Complex weapons projects are the only ones run by people who know what they’re doing.

Still I’m sure the original range said something like 120 miles? maybe my memory is playing tricks on me though…….

UUUMMMMMMMMMMMMMM

So, five years from the first sketches to full production.
Fifteen months from first sketches to first flight.
On time.
On budget.

I am quite sure that somewhere there´s some law forbiding such a sorry state of afairs!

😀

yum yum.

I do think precision attack is an area the UK has made excellent progress in since the 90s.

Also take a look at the news on the F35 thread with regard to Spear 3 integration on the F35….