Raytheon Missile Systems has moved into a new stage of testing its miniature air-Launched Decoy (MALD) with a series of flights over the Gulf of Mexico.
After a series of jettison tests from F-16s and B-52s, the two ‘threshold aircraft’ for the 500-mile range, M0.9 vehicle, Raytheon says it has begun powered flights in which MALD navigated to a series of waypoints.
The vehicle also exercised its payload, a decoy repeater designed to make the small MALD resemble an F-16 or B-52. The MALD’s repeater operates in three wavebands and can make itself resemble a small, medium and large aircraft in each band. It exercised the ability to change its signature during the latest flights.
MALD is designed as a relatively cheap ‘stand-in jammer’, which will be released from a strike aircraft and accompany it to the target area to confuse defences. If not shot down, it will loiter in the target area to help dilute further air defence response to the manned aircraft.
Source: Flight Daily News