La empresa General Dynamics ha concretado ventas a países extranjeros por US$ 196 millones, para proveer los reconocidos y probados cohetes de 70mm HYDRA, a Colombia, Afghanistan, Iraq, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, India, y Belgium., esperando completar las entregas para Enero del 2019. La familia de cohetes Hydra, es muy versatil pudiendo cumplir gran cantidad de roles, incluyendo anti material y anti personal, así como misiones de supresión aire tierra. La clave para el “renacer” de este probado sistema, ha sido el agregado de un sistema de guiado de precisión de bajo costo, con lo que expande el número de armas de precisión, que pueden ser llevados por helicópteros, aviones y hasta UAVs.
Sen. Leahy’s [D-VT] worked in the mid-2000s to keep the Hydra 70mm rocket family alive through special appropriations, just in time for the Hydras’ potential on the battlefield to rise again. The key was the addition of low-cost precision guidance, which would expand the number of precision weapons carried by helicopters, aircraft, and even UAVs.
Over the last few years, the US Army’s 2nd attempt at an APKWS 70mm guided rocket had a near-death experience, before righting the program with Navy funding. Meanwhile, private development efforts are introducing new competitors into the precision-guided rocket space: Lockheed Martin, Thales TDA, and a raft of international partnerships involving major defense firms and partners in Korea, the UAE, Canada/Norway, and Israel. This DID FOCUS article covers the most prominent competitors within the guided rocket trend. Their products will sit between full anti-armor missiles like Hellfire, TOW, and Brimstone, and an emerging class of ultra-small precision attack weapons like Northrop Grumman’s Viper Strike, Raytheon’s Griffin, etc. Leer más >>
