Acquisition of the Wide Area Munition

Abstract

The Army initiated the Wide Area Munition program in November 1986, to be a smart, autonomous, top-attack, anti-tank munition to neutralize armored combat vehicles (track and heavy wheeled) at a standoff distance. The Wide Area Munition uses acoustic and seismic sensors in its ground platform to detect, track, and classify potential targets, and then launch an infrared detecting submunition over the top of the selected tracked target. Once above the target, it fires an explosively formed penetrator intended to neutralize the lightly armored top-side of most combat vehicles. The program office estimates that the system will cost about $335 million in research, development, test, and evaluation funds and about $1.7 billion in procurement. The Army Acquisition Executive is the milestone decision authority for this program that the Army manages as an Acquisition Category II major acquisition program.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Oct 24, 2001
Accession Number
ADA395869

Entities

People

  • Barbara S. Wright
  • Bradley M. Helter
  • Douglas P. Neville
  • John E. Meting
  • Mary L. Ugone

Organizations

  • Office of the Inspector General, U.S. Department of Defense

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • C4I
  • Human Systems
  • Sensors
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Accounting
  • Armored Vehicles
  • Army Procurement
  • Combat Vehicles
  • Congress
  • Contracts
  • Department Of Defense
  • Employment
  • Financial Management
  • Governments
  • Military Acquisition
  • Munitions
  • Navy
  • Operations Research
  • Scatterable Mines
  • Test And Evaluation
  • Warfare

Readers

  • Life Cycle Cost Analysis
  • Maritime Combat Support and Expeditionary Logistics.
  • Sensor Fusion and Tracking Systems.