Raytheon’s Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM) has achieved its longest known air-to-air missile shot after being deployed from an F-22 Raptor aircraft in a trial.
Specific details, such as the range, were not disclosed, apart from how its extended time-of-flight capability resulted from the US Air Force’s Form, Fit, Function Refresh (F3R) development effort and the US defense company’s ongoing modernization work.
Raytheon revealed that the series of tests was conducted in the fall of 2024 in collaboration with the Air Combat Command at Eglin Air Force Base, the main center for research, development, and testing of air-delivered weapons and related systems.
The development hints at the missile’s increased lethality and farther reach.
“Achieving air superiority in the future, highly contested battlespace depends on the precision and lethality of air-to-air missiles,” said Sam Deneke, president of Air & Space Defense Systems at Raytheon.
Deneke further noted that the tests “prove it will continue to play a critical role for the US and its allies for decades to come” amid evolving threats from near-peer adversaries like China and Russia.
AMRAAM Modernization Effort
The AIM-120 AMRAAM is a beyond-visual-range, fire-and-forget missile with all-weather capability, designed to intercept enemy aircraft, cruise missiles, and drones.
Under the F3R program, the AIM-120D-3 for the US military and the AIM-120C-8 export variant underwent a comprehensive modernization to maintain effectiveness through the 2030s.
In 2022, Raytheon secured a $972-million contract to begin production of the F3R-upgraded missiles.
A series of tests followed, initially starting with the F-15E Strike Eagle launching an upgraded AIM-120D-3 AMRAAM against an aerial target.
The trials concluded with a live-fire demonstration of an AIM-120D-3 from an F-16 fighter jet in July 2023.
Those were followed by the maiden flight test of the AIM-120C-8 AMRAAM from an F-15C Eagle aircraft in the same year.
Several US allies, including Germany, Japan, and Saudi Arabia, operate the AIM-120C-8 missile.
Meanwhile, a successor is already on the horizon, with the US Navy developing the AIM-260 Joint Advanced Tactical Missile (JATM) to eventually complement and surpass the AMRAAM’s capabilities.
