Paveway IV a New Departure for the RAF, and Raytheon
Thursday's decision by the UK in favor of Raytheon's Paveway
IV solution to the RAF's Precision Guided Bomb (PGB) requirement
is a most important development. For the RAF it introduces a significant
operational capability, but for Raytheon it opens up an entirely
new guided weapons market.
The UK has said 'no thank you' to the Boeing-developed JDAM GPS-guided
bomb, but an eager 'yes please' to Raytheon's weapon. Because
of its dual-mode guidance, combining a laser seeker and GPS navigation
for enhanced accuracy, the Paveway IV is a different kind of precision-guided
munition (PGM). With a £120 million development, integration
and production contract in the bag, Raytheon is now able to offer
the Paveway IV not only to existing Paveway laser-guided bomb
(LGB) customers, but also to a host of new potential users who
will clearly be influenced by the RAF's selection of the Paveway
IV. The UK decision may even have implications for future U.S.
weapons choices. Raytheon currently has no U.S. government funding
for the Paveway IV program so it is entirely dependent on the
British taxpayer.
The selection of the Paveway IV is based on solid operational
experience with a forerunner system, the Enhanced Paveway. Specially
developed for the UK, the Enhanced Paveway was rushed into service
following the RAF's bad experiences in the 1999 Kosovo conflict
when standard LGBs were hampered by poor weather, smoke and other
factors. RAF Tornado GR.Mk 4s dropped over 200 Enhanced Paveways
on targets in Iraq during the March/April conflict this year,
and in the months leading up to the war as part of the enforcement
campaign over southern Iraq. The superb combat effectiveness of
the Enhanced Paveway was acknowledged both by the RAF and the
U.S. command authorities in the region.
he Paveway IV is an all-new completely integrated design that
is built around a penetrating 500-lb Mk 82 bomb body with an insensitive
munitions fill and an advanced fuse. From an industrial and strategic
point of view the JDAM bid (offered in the UK by MBDA Missile
Systems) had some persuasive arguments. However, the Paveway IV
could always call on the RAF's overwhelmingly positive experience
with the Enhanced Paveway. It had been thought that the PGB announcement,
already delayed, would be further postponed while the RAF conducted
its after action review of operations over Iraq . Clearly, the
UK authorities already know all they need to know to give a rapid
thumbs-up to Paveway IV procurement.
Because it is a UK-specific weapon, unlike the JDAM, the Paveway IV is not
part of the Joint Strike Fighter's U.S.-sourced weapons set. Its
selection by the UK, the primary export JSF customer, will force
the issue of systems-level technical access to the JSF as the UK
is sure to want to integrate its latest strike weapon on its latest
strike fighter. It remains to be seen just how much ground the U.S.
will give on this sensitive matter-or whether the UK will be forced
to adopt a second new (and U.S.-supplied) PGM for the JSF later
in the decade.
