Defence Trials

ASRAAM Missile Trials

ARDU conducted live firings of the AIM-132 Advanced Short Range Air to Air Missile (ASRAAM) at the WTF in May 2002. The ASRAAM is being procured for the RAAF’s F/A-18 Hornets, and to introduce the missile into service, a formal evaluation of the performance of the ASRAAM capability was undertaken at Woomera. The first test involved a flight safety assessment, performed by ARDU test pilots. The Hornet was flown to the limits of its performance with the ASRAAM on its wingtip station and the behaviour monitored. Live firings of the ASRAAM were subsequently performed using Kalkara drone aircraft as targets. The Hornets were based at Woomera Airfield and the Kalkara drones were launched from Evetts Field at the Woomera Rangehead.