QinetiQ reports first successful flights of new design Rattler Supersonic Target

QinetiQ supports the development of customised Rattler Supersonic Target MkI for U.S. Department of Defense

MCLEAN, Va., March 20, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- QinetiQ, in partnership with the United States Department of Defense and White Sands Missile Range High Energy Laser Systems Test Facility (HELSTF), announces the successful flights of the first two Rattler Supersonic Target MkIs.

As part of the High Energy Laser Measurement (HELM) Rattler program and a QinetiQ funded Research and Development project, the flights provided the first data for this design variant of the uncrewed target. It also presented opportunities for the HELSTF Tracking Illuminating Laser System to acquire, track and queue from a supersonic target at a short slant range, aiding the program's Rattler variant development.

Graham Ollis, Managing Director, Threat Representation, QinetiQ, said, "This flight represents an important milestone in the Rattler transition to service project, and demonstrates our supersonic target capability in action for our U.S. customer, as part of the HELM Rattler program, to meet the requirement for evolving threats."

Owen Price, Project Manager Target Systems, QinetiQ, said, "I am proud of the significant progress we've made with our development partners and customer in fielding this flight trial. We have been able to showcase QinetiQ's technical and operational expertise and teamwork, launching the new Rattler ST MkI product and as part of developing the HELM Rattler test and evaluation target system for the war fighter, as requirements for more realistic, instrumented threat representation become ever more important."

Emulating a variety of advanced missile threats, Rattler ST is a cost-effective supersonic target platform designed for threat replication, operational training and system evaluation. QinetiQ is customising the platform to support the U.S. Department of Defense's HELM Rattler Program, integrating a third-party target board to measure high-energy laser characteristics in flight, at supersonic speeds. The $10 million (USD) program started in February 2022 and is due to conclude in mid-2024.

QinetiQ's portfolio of targets are built in line with customers' requirements to meet the current and evolving threats that they are needing to defend and train against, delivering realistic Threat Representation.

For more information on the Rattler supersonic target, click here.

About QinetiQ 
QinetiQ is an integrated global defence and security company focused on mission-led innovation.  Our purpose is protecting lives by serving the national security interests of our customers. We employ more than 8,500 highly-skilled people, committed to creating new ways of testing technologies, systems, and processes to make sure they meet operational needs; and enabling customers to deploy new and enhanced capabilities with the assurance they will deliver the performance required.

About QinetiQ US
QinetiQ US is a leading defense and security company in the United States providing mission-led innovation at pace. QinetiQ US is a provider of technologically advanced services and products to the US Department of Defense and national security agencies, positioned to deliver key aspects of the modernization required to address our customers' pivot to counter near peer adversaries. QinetiQ's engineering services span the DoD and Intel community providing subject matter expertise in the areas of communications, sensor integration and research and development, survivability and unmanned ground combat systems.

QinetiQ US operates as the U.S. arm of QinetiQ Group plc (QQ.LSE), an integrated global defense and security company focused on innovation for defense, security and civil customers. QinetiQ US employees are based predominantly in Virginia and Massachusetts and operate under a Special Security Agreement (SSA) with the U.S. Defense Counterintelligence & Security Agency (DCSA). QinetiQ US is creating new ways of protecting what matters most; testing technologies, systems, and processes to make sure they work as expected; and enabling customers to deploy new and enhanced-existing capabilities with the assurance they will deliver the outcomes required. Please visit our website at https://www.qinetiq.com/en-us/ and follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook @QinetiQUS. 

About QinetiQ Target Systems
QinetiQ Target Systems is a world leader in the design, development, manufacture and operation of advanced uncrewed target systems for threat representation, for live-fire training exercises and weapons test and evaluation. Our comprehensive range of aerial, land and sea target systems provide realistic representation of modern threats from swarming fast inshore attack craft, to manoeuvrable supersonic missiles. Highly versatile in their design and performance and with a wide range of payloads, our target systems can be easily adapted to represent a multitude of different threat scenarios. Through intelligent engineering, recoverability and reuse, our target systems are also highly cost effective.
www.qinetiq.com/targetsystems

Visit the website at www.QinetiQ.com

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SOURCE QinetiQ