AI‑boosted SPEAR missiles set new benchmark in aerial warfare

The European MBDA Corporation is accelerating the implementation of artificial intelligence into SPEAR-winged missiles. AI is intended to coordinate multiple missiles in flight while still maintaining human control over their behavior.

MBDA has boasted that, over the last 12 months, engineers have achieved significant success in integrating artificial intelligence (AI) with the Orchestrike weapon system. As a result, the SPEAR family of missiles will be the first family of winged missiles to use AI to enable the cooperation of multiple missiles in flight.

The concept of the Orchestrike system was first showcased during the Paris Air Show in 2023, and engineers have brought the solution to full functionality in a very short time. The vision was to drastically increase the efficiency of SPEAR missiles through their mutual coordination and cooperation with the pilot of the carrier aircraft using artificial intelligence.

Orchestrike allows missiles to respond to threats and cooperate with the pilot in executing tactical tasks. This increases the chances of survival for both the missile and the aircraft, thereby enhancing the mission's effectiveness. The missiles' actions are always constrained by operator directives, ensuring their compliance with legal and ethical norms.

During the Farnborough International Airshow, MBDA presented a digital simulator - a twin of Orchestrike, equipped with real missile artificial intelligence and hardware, including new data links with radio network support. This will allow future military users to perform a simulated raid, during which the missiles can react in real-time and collaboratively to changes in the tactical situation thanks to the capabilities of artificial intelligence.

The SPEAR winged missiles are a compact solution designed to handle a very wide range of tasks, from destroying moving targets in all weather conditions to neutralizing enemy air defenses. This family of missiles is designed to operate on the network-centric battlefield and structurally draws heavily from Brimstone-3 missiles.

Like the Brimstone-3, they are compact missiles with a length of under 6.6 feet, which can be carried in triple launchers that occupy one tower, giving the aircraft tremendous firepower. For example, the Eurofighter Typhoon can carry up to 12 such missiles. On the other hand, up to eight such missiles can fit into the limited-capacity internal weapon bays of the F-35.

Another common feature of the Brimstone-3 is that it could be a multi-range seeker head based on a combination of GPS and INS navigation, and a seeker head can use a laser beam and onboard radar. Such a combination ensures up to 98.7% accuracy in combat conditions in any conditions and for any target. Most likely, SPEAR also has, like the Brimstone-3, the ability to operate in "fire and forget" mode, in which the missile autonomously searches for targets based on their signature.

On the other hand, SPEAR differs from Brimstone in its twice higher mass of approximately 220 lbs, foldable wings, and the use of a turbojet engine, which translates into a greater range. This range is unknown, but there were reports at one of the presentations of future Eurofighter capabilities about combatting targets at over 87 miles.

SPEAR is intended to have a multifunctional warhead, but that's not all. There is also a SPEAR-EW version being developed, which, similarly to the ADM-160B MALD, will have an electronic warfare module serving as a decoy or to jam enemy radars. As a result, a unique family of weapons is emerging, significantly increasing the capabilities of the machines integrated with it.