Raytheon's new "Peregrine" medium-range air-to-air missile

via Air Force Magazine

The weapon is expected to measure just under 6 feet long and 150 pounds, less than half the weight and length of Raytheon's AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile and AIM-9X Sidewinder that fly on fighters across the Defense Department.

“We’re able to take the best of both of those missiles and, based on what we see as the customer’s requirements and gaps, we are combining them into this new missile,” Noyes said.

Peregrine “combines the range and the autonomy of the AMRAAM with the maneuverability characteristics of the AIM-9X” with extreme maneuverability as it approaches its target. The weapon will cost “significantly less" to buy and maintain than the AIM-120 or AIM-9X, and is faster to develop, thanks to ready-made components and additive manufacturing.

The Peregrine will have a multi-mode, autonomous seeker that includes infrared imaging. It uses a “new, high-performance propulsion system" to boost speed, Noyes said. He would only characterize the missile's range as “from visual range to within medium range” but said Peregrine is a supersonic munition.

The all-weather, day or night weapon has a blast fragmentation warhead and a “new lightweight airframe and high-performance modular control system” that allows for highly accurate targeting, Noyes said.

Story here.