Raytheon’s SM-6 Missile Test Fired From Aegis Destroyer

The US Navy and Raytheon have successfully tested the Standard Missile-6 (SM-6) from the USS John Paul Jones on Monday.

The test was a demonstration of the U.S. Navy's concept of "distributed lethality," employing ships in dispersed formations to increase the offensive might of the surface force and enabling future options for the joint force commander. Another Air Defense Arleigh Burke Class Destroyer was on station as the assist ship.

The mission validated that the legacy Anti-Surface Warfare (ASUW) capability of the Standard Missile-2 family of missiles and the MK7 Aegis Weapon System (AWS) has successfully carried over to SM-6 and the latest Aegis Destroyer baseline 9. The investment in the Standard Missile family resulted in an affordable SM-6 effector that continues to perform beyond expectations.

"This test event demonstrated Raytheon's decades of continued technological development and partnership with the U.S. Navy," said Dr. Taylor Lawrence, Raytheon Missile Systems president. "The ability to leverage the Standard Missile Family and the legacy AWS in newly fielded systems brings additional warfighting capability to the U.S. Fleet."

In recent testing, SM-6 has shown expanded mission capability in three key areas: Anti-Air Warfare, Sea-Based Terminal and Anti-Surface Warfare. The tri-mission capability of SM-6 continues to emphasize its value by providing additional capability beyond its original intended mission.