04 October 2022

Development of RASH-2H glide munition approaches completion

by Huw Williams

The RASH-2H (left) is a clean-sheet design, while the RASH-2M (middle) and RASH-1M (right) use modified mortar bombs. (EDGE Group)

Abu Dhabi-based ADASI is in the “final stages of development and qualification” of its RASH-2H guided munition.

Speaking during a media briefing, Mohamed Al Nuaimi, senior programme manager, engineering and technology at ADASI, said that the RASH-2H will soon enter production.

Al Nuaimi said that the munition is a clean-sheet design, while the earlier RASH-1M and RASH-2M add a guidance kit to mortar bombs that also feature modified fuzes to enable their air-launched profile.

According to company data, the RASH-2H is fitted with an 11.6 kg high-explosive fragmentation warhead that is made up of 10,700 fragments and has a lethal radius of up to 60 m. Like the RASH-1M and RASH-2M, the newest member of the family utilises global positioning system (GPS) and inertial navigation system (INS) guidance. However, it can also undertake a cursor-on-target engagement via an optional electro-optic/infrared payload in the nose of the munition that uses an ultra-high frequency (UHF) datalink. Al Nuaimi said that a semi-active laser (SAL) seeker is on the product road map for the RASH-2H.

The unpowered glide munition features a 1 m-wide wing that unfolds when released. According to ADASI, it has a range of 23 km when launched from its maximum operating altitude of 25,000 ft, which decreases to 3.6 km at an altitude of 5,000 ft. Al Nuaimi said that the RASH-2H can achieve a circular error probable of 1 m.

The RASH family is dropped from an ADASI-developed launcher unit, and the fire control system can manage up to 24 munitions, Al Nuaimi added.

Abu Dhabi-based ADASI is in the “final stages of development and qualification” of its RASH-2H guide...

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