유도탄 호주, F-35A에 운용할 JSM 주문

[위종민]

호주가 F-35A에 통합할 대함미사일로 노르웨이, 일본, 미국에 이어 JSM을 선택했네요. 2025년 인도될 예정이고, 계약금액은 1억 4,200만 호주달러입니다. 

JSM은 F-35A의 내부 폭탄창에 탑재 가능하며 저피탐, 스텔스 능력을 갖추고 있습니다. 

2022년에 수상함용 하푼을 NSM으로 교체하기로 결정했었는데, 당연하다면 당연한 일이지만 공중발사 대함미사일도 JSM을 선정했네요. 

When Computers Went To Sea | 호주, 콩스버그와 NSM 미사일 공급계약 체결 - Daum 카페

호주, 콩스버그와 NSM 미사일 공급계약 체결

Australia joins global JSM users for F-35A fighters - Airforce Technology (airforce-technology.com)

Australia joins global JSM users for F-35A fighters - Airforce Technology

Australia joins global JSM users for F-35A fighters

The Commonwealth nation will follow in the footsteps of three major allies and fellow F-35A operators: Norway, Japan and the US.

John HillSeptember 6, 2024

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Test fire of a developed Joint Strike Missile (JSM) on a US Air Force F-35A Joint Strike Fighter. Australia will follow Norway, Japan and the US in adopting the air-launched missile. Credit: Kongsberg Defence Australia, used by Defence with permission.

Australia has selected the Joint Strike Missile (JSM) as the Air Force’s future long-range, air-launched capability for its 60 active F-35A Lightning II fighter jets.

The Commonwealth nation will follow in the footsteps of three major allies and fellow F-35A operators – Norway, Japan and the US – in opting for Kongsberg’s fifth-generation guided munition.

Eirik Lie, president of the Norwegian manufacturer, confirmed that “Australia’s participation will benefit the programme and the other user nations through both competence and resources,” effectively setting up a reliable user ecosystem spanning three continents.

Scheduled to arrive from 2025, the Australian purchase will cost A$142m, or approximately Nkr1bn according to the Norwegian supplier.

Launching JSM

JSM will be deployed from the aircraft’s internal carriage; the weapon provides a precise, long-range strike capability against land and sea targets.

Primary targets are usually mobile, highly defended and high-value assets on sea, in coastal waters or on land. Notably, JSM has off-board, on-board and in-flight mission planning, and it can engage targets based on a pre-defined set of Rules-of-Engagement. 

Test fire of a development Joint Strike Missile on the US Air Force’s F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. Credit: Kongsberg Defence Australia.

The weapon also incorporates advanced composite materials and employs low-signature, stealth technology that ensures a low radar signature. With that, JSM’s low-altitude, sea-skimming flight method helps it delay detection and engagement by a target’s radar defence system.

RAAF missile portfolio

While the latest purchase of the advanced JSM capability will enhance Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) missions, the new missile also serves to add to the service’s existing air-launched missile inventory.

Currently, the RAAF employ different types of weapons for various roles, such as the AIM-120C-7 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles (AMRAAM), which the Defence Force purchased 108 units in a Foreign Military Sale with the US in 2019.

AMRAAM is an air-to-air missile used in the US Air Force and various other countries. The AIM-120C variant has smaller control surfaces to enable the internal carriage on the F/A-22 aircraft and carries an improved warhead. It was further upgraded to create a new variant called AIM-120C-7, which was successfully tested in 2003.

The service also acquired more than 60 Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile – Extended Range (AARGM-ER) missiles from the US too. These air-to-ground missiles are a specialised and used to target enemy radar systems.

Australia: a new hub for Kongsberg missile production

The new JSM user announced its decision to invest A$25m in a 2,500m² facility located on 6,000m² site in Adelaide, South Australia on the same day that the Defence Force purchased JSMs on 5 September 2024.

This facility will support acquisition and sustainment programmes including Naval Strike Missile (NSM) for the Royal Australian Navy, National Advanced Surface to Air Missile Systems (NASAMS),CORTEX C4 for Protected Mobile Fires, and Protector Remote Weapon Stations for the Australian Army through local manufacture, assembly, integration, test, verification and training.

While JSM ecosystem grows by one, it is worth noting that NSM boasts 13 countries: Australia, Belgium, Canada, Germany, Latvia, Malaysia, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Spain, the UK, US Navy and Marine Corps have all selected the system.

This decision marks Kongsberg’s acceptance as a global strategic partner in expanding the Australian government’s Guided Weapons and Explosive Ordnance (GWEO) enterprise, backed by a commitment of A$16-21bn over the next ten years.

[Minowski(김유철)]

NSM이 참 틈새와 수요를 잘 파악한 체계인 것 같습니다. 소형플랫폼도 다수 운용가능하고... 당분간 NSM/JSM이 평정하겠죠?

[위종민]

사실상 하푼을 잇는 서방의 표준 대함미사일이 됐죠. 한국은 수입할 계획은 없는 것 같은데 동급 SSM/ASM을 자체개발할 생각인 건지 뭔지...

[강준구]

적어도 F-35 용으로는 JSM 외에는 답이 없는 상황인데, 무리한 국산화 논리(KF-21 포함)로 적절한 시기를 놓칠 것 같다는 생각도 듭니다. 그리고, F-35에 대한 신형 무장 통합 보다는 F-15K에 대한 업글이 우선될 것 같기도 합니다.