June 3 (Reuters) – Defense major Lockheed Martin said on Wednesday that it had successfully launched a missile from a shipping container and intercepted a test drone amid rising demand for low-cost counter-drone solutions.
The Pentagon has long backed containerized weapons systems deployed from standard shipping containers as a low-cost and mobile defense capability.
Here are some details:
• The joint-air-to-ground missile was launched from a 10-foot container in a system called “GRIZZLY containerized launcher.”
• It intercepted a one-way attack drone that can strike a target by crashing into it.
• The launcher uses commercial off-the-shelf materials, reducing logistics footprint and acquisition cost.
• It can be mounted on ground sites or maritime platforms and hold up to eight munitions at once, allowing it to deliver a relatively large volume of fire.
• The missile test used sensors and software from Sanctum Counter-Unmanned Aerial System, jointly developed with Microsoft, as well as R-40 radars made by Utah-based startup Fortem Technologies to track and engage the target.
• The Pentagon had also signed a framework agreement with four other defense companies in May, including Leidos, to launch the Low-Cost Containerized Missiles program, which aims to procure 10,000 missiles over three years, starting in 2027.
(Reporting by Aishwarya Jain in Bengaluru; Editing by Leroy Leo)
