US Marines successfully test new unmanned Naval Strike Missile system

News, US July 25, 2023 , by IRIA No Comments

The U.S. Marine Corps announced that it has successfully tested a new unmanned variant of the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle armed with the Naval Strike Missile system. The unmanned vehicle can fire anti-ship cruise missiles from the shore to hit naval targets in the sea.

The new coastal missile system has been named the Navy/Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System or NMESIS. It was first tested by the U.S. Marine Corps on June 28, 2023, at the Naval Air Station Point in Mugu, California. The system has been handed over to the Marine Corps for further testing and evaluation before regular deployment.

U.S. Marines Corps have handed over the new system 2nd Battalion, 11th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division to carry out a firing test of the NMESIS and to confirm the new weapon system’s integration and operational capabilities.

NMESIS batteries are composed of 18 launchers which are separated into two platoons of nine launchers each. The platoons are further subdivided into three sections of three launchers each.

NMESIS is made up of an unmanned variant of the Joint Lightweight Tactical Vehicle and Naval Strike Missile (NSM) fire control system. During the development phase in 2021, NMESIS took part in the U.S. Marine Corps Large-Scale Exercise 21 (LSE21). It was deployed in the exercise through a C130 transport aircraft and took part in a sinking exercise. The system successfully fired an RGM-184A Naval Strike Missile (NSM) at a decommissioned guided-missile frigate Ingraham.

RGM-184A NSM

RGM-184A NSM is produced by Raytheon Missile in partnership with the original equipment maker Kongsberg, a Norwegian defense and aerospace company. RGM-184A is a modern multi-mission cruise missile that is meant to strike maritime and land targets. It has a strike range of 185 kilometers. The missile is equipped with a terrain-following guidance setup, which is supplemented by a GPS location setup.

^{U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Cade Heller, an artillery cannoneer with Fox Battery, 2nd Battalion, 11th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, prepares a Navy/Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System to be fired at Naval Air Station Point Mugu, California, on June 27, 2023. (Image Credit: U.S. Marine Corps/Cpl. Earik Barton)}

Along with the U.S. and Norway, naval forces from the Netherlands, Poland, Germany, Romania, Canada, Malaysia, Spain, the UK, and Australia also use RGM-184A Naval Strike Missiles.

NMESIS to become operational in 2023

After completing the series of tests and evaluations, the NMESIS will become fully operational within the last quarter of 2023. The USMC plans to declare Initial Operating Capability (IOC) with the system once four batteries are fully equipped by 2025. Once the U.S. Marine Corps fields all 14 planned medium-range missile batteries in 2030, the system will reach its full operational capability milestone.

After becoming operational, NMESIS is expected to become the centerpiece of the U.S. Marine Corps force design by 2030. It would be deployed in the Western Pacific region to deny coastal attacks and to keep an eye on the key chokepoints in the region.