The US Marine Corps has completed an operational assessment of the BAE Systems Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS), a laser guided 2.75in rocket employed by helicopter gunships.
The tests, conducted at the US Navy’s China lake facility in California, saw the APKWS score a 100 per cent hit rate in the eight test shots fired from an AH-1W Super Cobra flying a variety of scenarios and against soft and armoured targets.
The APKWS has been designed to reduce collateral damage caused by the previously unguided version of the 2.75in rocket by adding the laser guidance seeker. Plans are underway to employ the APKWS from fixed wing platforms such as the AV-8B Harrier or light attack and COIN aircraft.
