Leonardo has shown the Wildcat Weapon Wing for the AW159 naval Wildcat HMA2 helicopter for the first time. The wing, which permits the Wildcat to launch missiles, was displayed during a week-long public engagement exercise in Liverpool by the UK’s latest aircraft carrier, HMS Prince of Wales (deck number R09).
Graphics of the weapon carrier were first made public by Leonardo in February 2018, but the design has been enhanced aerodynamically since then, adding 360 kilograms (794 pounds) of lift to help offset the extra weight of the wing and its missiles. Made from aluminum and carbon-fiber composites, the wing has four hardpoints, each of which can carry a cluster of five Thales Martlet lightweight laser-guided missiles in their launch tubes, or a single MBDA Sea Venom. Other weaponry carried by the Wildcat includes the BAE Systems Stingray torpedo, Mk 11 depth charges, and pintle-mounted 0.5-in (12.7-mm) machine-gun.
Full development and implementation of the weapons wing is scheduled to meet the requirements of the initial deployment by HMS Queen Elizabeth (R08), the first of the UK’s two new carriers. That first operational voyage is due next year and is known as Carrier Strike Group 2021, or CSG21. The cruise is planned to sail to the Middle East and Pacific, and will include Lockheed Martin F-35Bs from both the joint Royal Air Force/Royal Navy No. 617 Squadron and aircraft from a U.S. Marine Corps unit. Navy Merlin helicopters will also be aboard. In CSG21, the Wildcats are due to operate from the Type 23 frigates and Type 45 destroyers that will be part of the carrier group, providing force protection and anti-surface capabilities.
The Wildcat will initially deploy without the Sea Venom missile, which is scheduled to attain operational capability in early 2022. Until that weapon enters service, the Wildcat’s precision attack capability will be met by the 13-kg (29-lb) Martlet, of which up to 20 can be carried. The Martlet was previously known as the Lightweight Multi-mission Missile (LMM).
Developed by MBDA, the 110-kg (240-lb) Sea Venom is being procured by both the Royal Navy and the French Marine Nationale for anti-ship attack, with the capability to lock on to its target both before and after launch. In French service it is known as the Anti-Navire Léger (ANL) and is intended to arm the Airbus H160M Guépard.
The program recently took a significant step forward with the successful conclusion of the first qualification trial, following three developmental test firings. Fired at low level from a Dauphin helicopter over the DGA Essais de missiles test site at Île du Levant on February 20, the missile flew out at sea-skimming height before attacking its target. In the terminal phase, the launch crew refined the weapon’s aimpoint using imagery datalinked back to the helicopter from the missile’s imaging infrared seeker.