U.K.'s Spear-3 Air-to-surface Missile Set for Year-end Test Fire

The U.K.'s next-generation air-launched surface attack weapon, Spear 3, is set to undergo its first guided firing later this year.

The announcement was made by Minister for Defence Procurement Maria Eagle in response to a written question from Conservative MP James Cartlidge regarding the future funding of the programme.

In her statement, Eagle confirmed that the Spear 3 programme is currently in the demonstration phase, and the next milestone will be the weapon's first guided firing, which was originally scheduled for 2022 but was delayed due to technical issues. The first firing is now expected to take place before the end of this year.

The total investment in the Spear 3 programme amounts to approximately £1.4 billion. The weapon is a central part of the U.K.’s future air combat strategy, providing critical air-to-surface capabilities. While Spear 3 was initially projected to be operational by 2025, full operating capacity, particularly on the F-35B platform, might not be achieved until 2028.

Spear 3 is designed to operate across a range of platforms, including the Eurofighter Typhoon, F-35B Lightning, and potentially the future Tempest aircraft. It boasts a range of more than 140 kilometres, weighs under 90 kilograms, and is 1.8 metres in length. Powered by a turbojet engine, the missile can engage targets beyond the horizon, ensuring that the aircraft deploying it remains out of reach of hostile air defenses.

The weapon is equipped with a precision effects warhead and features a multi-mode sensor seeker, including a high-resolution millimeter wave radar and a semi-active laser. This allows for flexibility and selectivity in complex combat scenarios, making it effective against a wide array of targets, from air defense units and ballistic missile launchers to naval vessels and maneuvering vehicles.