03 February 2021

Update: Rafael unveils SPICE 250 ER development

by Robin Hughes

Rafael Advanced Defence Systems has disclosed development of a powered, extended range (ER) variant of the SPICE 250 air-to-surface autonomous glide weapon system.

Designated SPICE 250 ER, the new variant incorporates a micro-turbojet engine with an internal JP-8/10 fuel reservoir to deliver what is understood to be a conservatively stated range “of at least 150km”.

Currently in high-volume production for a number of customers, the standard SPICE 250 is an all-up weapon system, unlike the heavier 1000 and 2000 family variants, which are essentially electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) guidance and target acquisition add-on kits for 1000,lb and 2,000 lb general purpose and penetration warheads.

Weighing 250 lb (113 kg) and furnished with a 75 kg class warhead (blast fragmentation/penetration), the unpowered SPICE 250 variant is a lightweight day/night all-weather precision weapon with a stand-off range of 100 km and a stated circular error probable (CEP) of “better than 3 m.” Equipped with a mid-body fold-out wing assembly and rear cruciform tail control fin set, the weapon system features an improved EO/IR guidance package, midcourse INS/GPS navigation, a two-way datalink, and pre-set or cockpit selectable fuze options.

All current production SPICE variants – 250, 1000, 2000 – are furnished with an Automatic Target Acquisition (ATA) capability: an autonomous electro-optic scene matching technology designed to overcome GPS-jamming, navigation and target location errors in the engagement of fixed targets. On approach to the target, the scene-matching algorithm compares the electro-optical image received in real-time via the weapon seeker with mission reference data stored in the weapon’s computer memory.