The concept map of the F-35A external "Grey Mackerel Shark" missile showcased by Loma Corporation at the 2024 Sea and Space Conference. It can be seen that the F-35A fighter jet has 2 attached to the lower right wing, and the entire aircraft can have 4 attached externally. Loma Company claims that it can also have 2 embedded internally; According to this mode, the F/A-18E/F fighter jet should also be able to mount 4. On April 9th, Lockheed Martin officially unveiled its developed Mako air launched hypersonic missile at the 2024 Naval and Aerospace Conference held by the United States Navy. Rick Roy, Senior Program Manager of the Missile and Fire Control Division of the company, stated that the Grey Mackerel Shark is the fastest swimming shark and can meet the US Navy's demand for a missile system that is "multi tasking, highly capable, highly survivable, economically sustainable, and puts a large number of targets at risk.". According to official information from Loma Corporation, the "Grey Mackerel Shark" missile has been secretly developed for 7 years, and its participation in the Sea and Space Conference is its first public display. It is reported that "Grey Mackerel Shark" is not a bidding proposal for the US Navy's hypersonic airship offensive anti-ship warfare (HALO) project, but a proposal from the company to compete for the US Air Force's "SiAW" project. This once again confirms the company's previous statement that the grey mackerel shark has multitasking capabilities. The "Defense Area Attack Weapon" is a new generation of medium range air to surface missiles being developed by the US Air Force, aimed at filling the capability gap between the JDAM guided bomb and the AGM-158 Joint Air to Ground Defense Missile (JASSM) family, providing a new type of ground attack weapon that combines long-range, high power, and cost-effectiveness for stealth combat aircraft, especially the F-35A fighter jet. This project first appeared in the US Air Force budget in 2018, and the service released a Request for Information (RFI) in 2020. In March 2021, Boeing, L3 Harris, Lockheed Martin, Norg, and Raytheon were selected to develop related technologies. The following month, significant adjustments were made to initiate open competition; In May 2022, we will select three companies: Loma, Nog, and L3 Harris to enter the preliminary design phase; In September 2023, it was announced that Norgren had ultimately won the Engineering and Manufacturing Development (EMD) contract. According to the requirements of the US Air Force, the main objective of "attack weapons within the defense zone" is to "defeat ground targets that can be quickly maneuvered and redeployed within the enemy's Anti Intervention Area Denial (A2/AD) system.". But according to the description of the US Air Force, its strike targets include not only air defense radar, but also command and control stations· Ballistic missile and cruise missile launch vehicles· GPS interference system· Anti satellite system· Other high-value or time sensitive goals. The promotional video released by Loma Corporation at the Sea, Air and Space Conference shows that one US Air Force F-35A fighter jet can have 4 external missiles and 2 internal "Grey Mackerel Shark" missiles, and all of them can be launched in a short period of time. In fact, as early as August 2022, Loma Company had already released a 20 second video showcasing the prototype and application scenarios of its bidding for the "Attack Weapons within the Defense Zone" project. At that time, the video showed that the F-35 also adopted a "4 outer+2 inner" layout
Edit：Luo yu Responsible editor：Wang er dong
Source：China Aviation News
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