Northrop Grumman, working with the US Air Force (USAF), has conducted a separation test of the Stand-In Attack Weapon (SiAW) from an F-16 aircraft.
The test aimed to confirm the flight safety and aerodynamic performance of the SiAW missile as it moves towards integration with fifth-generation platforms, including the F-35.
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Air Force Life Cycle Management Center adaptive weapons division senior materiel leader colonel Gary E. Roos said: “The separation test of SiAW from the F-16 is intended to provide the United States Air Force validation of the weapon’s safe separation characteristics and also generate invaluable data for optimising its performance. The results can reinforce SiAW’s ability to provide a critical advantage to warfighters in the face of evolving threats.”
Northrop Grumman received a contract worth around $705m from the USAF in September 2023 to supply the SiAW.
In November 2024, the company delivered a SiAW test missile intended to confirm that the launch aircraft can carry and release the weapon safely.
The SiAW is an air-to-ground weapon, designed to engage “time-sensitive, high-value threats” in challenging environments.
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By GlobalDataIt is intended to provide strike capability to defeat rapidly relocatable targets as part of an enemy’s anti-access/area denial environment.
The strike missile uses digital engineering methods and open architecture interfaces to allow for rapid subsystem upgrades as requirements evolve.
Northrop Grumman advanced weapons vice president Chuck Johnson said: “With the insights from the separation test, we will continue missile development and ultimately, deliver a critical capability to the warfighter. Our work ensures the US Air Force will have a highly survivable precision strike weapon that will meet current and future mission needs.”
The missile forms part of the company’s wider advanced weapons offering, which includes missiles, components, interceptors, and electronics.
At the time of winning the contract, Northrop Grumman stated that work under the agreement would be carried out at its Northridge facility in California and at the Allegany Ballistics Laboratory in West Virginia.
