It was more than déjà vu for the Marine as he loaded a hypervelocity
projectile (HVP) into a gun at the Potomac River Test Range April 30.
The former artillery battery and battalion commander saw first-hand how
the Department of Defense (DoD) is developing game-changing technology.
Minutes later, he heard the 5-inch, 62-caliber open mount gun boom as
it fired the advanced projectile over the test range.
It was a typical day at the range with one grand exception.
The Marine loading the HVP was none other than Deputy Secretary of
Defense Bob Work.
Work visited the Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division (NSWCDD)
to thank service members and civilians, and to observe the live fire of three
guns: the 5-inch, 62-caliber open mount test gun; the MK 45 Mod 4 gun system;
and the electromagnetic railgun.
Work highlighted the Defense Innovation Initiative, a DoD-wide
effort to sustain and advance America’s military dominance for the 21st
century.
Moreover, he emphasized the importance of investing in innovation,
reforming the defense enterprise, and maintaining U.S. technological
superiority.
“We continue to improve current capabilities while we
also identify new technologies and ways of fighting to bolster our operational
advantages,” said Work. “Though there is
much prototyping and demonstrating left to do, the implications for the future
are game-changing.”
During his visit, Work witnessed the first time an HVP was fired from
the MK 45 Mod 4 gun system.
“It was an honor to demonstrate the HVP’s launch compatibility with
this gun system for the Deputy Secretary of Defense,” said NSWCDD Commander
Capt. Brian Durant. “This is the first step toward integrating the hypervelocity
projectile into the Navy’s MK 45 Mod 4 gun system.”
The MK 45 Mod 4 gun system — the current gun system deployed on the
Navy’s newest ships — enhances Naval Surface Fire Support capabilities and
provides fire mission flexibility for anti-surface and anti-air warfare.
The HVP — combined with the MK 45 — will support various mission areas
including naval surface fire support, and has the capacity to expand to a
variety of anti-air threats, anti-surface, and could expand the Navy’s engagement
options against current and emerging threats.
At the electromagnetic railgun facility, the deputy secretary of defense
witnessed a shot in the commissioning series of the new repetitive-rate medium
caliber electromagnetic railgun, sponsored by the Office of Naval Research.
“This gun will serve as a laboratory research device for experiments on
repetitive-rate bore life, instrumentation, and controls development,” said
NSWCDD Technical Director Dennis McLaughlin who, along with Durant, accompanied
Work throughout his visit. “We use smaller caliber railguns for risk reduction
before testing concepts in major caliber. This science and technology effort is
targeting repetitive-rate launcher and pulse-power risk reduction to ensure
successful railgun weapon system demonstrations.”
Electromagnetic railgun technology uses an electromagnetic force — known
as the Lorenz Force — to rapidly accelerate and launch a projectile between two
conductive rails. The guided projectile is launched at such high velocities
that it can achieve greater ranges than conventional guns. It harnesses enough
kinetic energy that it doesn't require any kind of high explosive payload when
it reaches its target.
High-energy electromagnetic railguns are expected to be lethal and
effective against multiple threats, including enemy warships, small boats, air
targets and land-based targets.
“The deputy secretary of defense saw capabilities that are crucial in sustaining
our warfighting edge and technological superiority,” said Durant. “Hypervelocity
projectiles fired from powder guns and the electromagnetic railgun are
important technologies in the Navy’s mixed arsenal of current and future
weapons.”
The electromagnetic railgun technology will complement current kinetic
weapons currently aboard surface combatants and offer a few specific
advantages.
It represents an “incredible new offensive capability for the U.S.
Navy," said Navy Chief Engineer Rear Adm. Bryant Fuller in an April 2014
news release about plans to install and test a prototype electromagnetic
railgun aboard a joint high speed vessel in fiscal year 2016. "This
capability will allow us to effectively counter a wide-range of threats at a
relatively low cost, while keeping our ships and Sailors safer.”
The cost per engagement against specific threats is orders of magnitude
less expensive than comparable missile engagements. The railgun projectile is
being designed to enable the conservation of expensive missiles for use against
more complex threats.
“NSWCDD will leverage its knowledge of electromagnetic launchers,
hypervelocity projectiles, and directed energy weapons, as well as its
established core capabilities in complex warfare systems development and integration,”
to incorporate electric weapons technology into existing and future fighting
forces and platforms, stated McLaughlin and Durant in NSWCDD’s 2015-2020 Strategic
Plan.
NSWCDD, a NAVSEA warfare center division, is a premier research and
development center that serves as a specialty site for weapon system
integration. The command's unique ability to rapidly introduce new technology
into complex warfighting systems is based on its longstanding competencies in
science and technology, research and development, and test and evaluation.