US defense giant Northrop Grumman has announced the successful completion of a series of tests of its new development – a miniature Hatchet bomb. This ammunition, weighing only 3 kg, is designed to arm drones and, despite its size, has its own semi-active homing laser head.
The US Department of Defense was interested in developing such an ammunition, which financed at least the tests themselves. It is noted that during the tests, all ammunition showed 100% accuracy and “lay” in a certain 2-meter circle. There is also a promotional video from Hatchet that explains its features.
“Development of the munition itself is now complete, and Hatchet is ready to use the platform and certify any unmanned or manned aerial system,” Northrop Grumman said, according to Janes. It is worth noting that the development of the concept of such a mini-ammunition began in 2012, as a simple, high-precision and cheap weapons for relatively light UAVs.
In particular, in the promo video it is possible to easily identify the UAV, which can be a carrier of Hatchet – RQ-7B Shadow. This is a relatively small drone that can easily lift four 3-pound Hatchets in special containers. Thus, the only important condition for a UAV to use Hatchet is the presence of a laser backlight target.
It should be noted that the Armed Forces of Ukraine are now very interested in using such simple and high-precision weapons systems. At the very least, such weapons can be extremely effective against enemy light armored vehicles, including self-propelled artillery systems, as well as conventional guns.