Orbital Sciences has completed development flight testing of the US Navy's GQM-163A Coyote supersonic sea-skimming target. The ducted rocket/ramjet-powered vehicle reached Mach 2.8 and exceeded 11g in manoeuvres, cruised at M2.5 while 50ft (15m) above the sea and passed within 20m of a remotely controlled target ship during a flight that lasted 120s and covered 100km (54nm). Orbital is building the USN's first 20 production GQM-163A targets.
Source: Flight International