Popular Mechanics:
In response to a range of new threats to its ships, whether it be air- and surface-launched missiles or drone aircraft, the U.S. Navy is improving and expanding its ship-defense capabilities. In early March, a test on the USS Porter—a guided-missile destroyer stationed in Rota, Spain—paired Raytheon’s new Block 2 Rolling Airframe Missile with a launch and tracking system called SeaRAM to demonstrate a new way to protect ships.
Raytheon’s Rolling Airframe Missile (RAM) is a lightweight supersonic weapon designed to destroy anti-ship missiles and other airborne threats to a ship at close range, typically less than 10 miles. Much like a bullet fired from a rifled-barrel, RAM Block 2 rolls around its longitudinal axis as it flies. The missile uses the rolling motion generated by its tail fins to change direction on a dime. It’s guided by a radio frequency (RF)/infrared seeker to intercept threats.
