Lockheed Martin Tests PAC-3 MSE Interceptor Upgrades

Lockheed Martin demonstrated new upgrades to its PAC-3 Missile Segment Enhancement (MSE) interceptor during flight tests conducted at White Sands Missile Range on August 9.

During the tests, a PAC-3 MSE intercepted a tactical ballistic missile target, validating missile and launcher software and hardware component upgrades. The upgrades, which enable future performance of the PAC-3 MSE interceptor to keep pace against expanding threats of today and tomorrow, will be incorporated into production over the next year, the company announced Monday.

Separately, two PAC-3 Cost Reduction Initiative (CRI) missiles successfully intercepted their tactical ballistic missile targets in support of the U.S. Army’s Field Surveillance Program (FSP) that confirms the reliability and readiness of fielded PAC-3 missiles. The tests marked the 17th and 18th successful PAC-3 CRI FSP intercepts, reconfirming the missile’s ability to detect, track and intercept threats while meeting fielded reliability requirements. The first PAC-3 MSE FSP flight test is scheduled to take place later this year.

PAC-3 missiles defend against incoming threats through direct body-to-body contact, delivering exponentially more kinetic energy on the target than can be achieved with blast-fragmentation kill mechanisms.