Northrop Grumman's Stand-in Attack Weapon. (Northrop Grumman)

The US Air Force (USAF) has awarded Northrop Grumman a USD705 million contract to develop and test the Stand-in Attack Weapon (SiAW), an air-to-ground missile intended to strike high-priority targets, the company announced on 25 September.

SiAW is designed to be carried internally by the Lockheed Martin F-35, which cannot employ ground attack missiles currently in the arsenal. The missile will also be integrated with other USAF platforms, although the F-35 is scheduled to be the first aircraft with which it is set to be integrated.

“To adapt to ever-changing threats, the missile design features open architecture interfaces that will allow for rapid subsystem upgrades,” Northrop Grumman said in a statement.

Northrop Grumman is to conduct at least four test flights of SiAW in advance of the USAF's desired 2026 initial operational capability (IOC), according to the company. The missile reportedly leverages ongoing work with a similar US Navy programme, the Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile – Extended Range (AARGM-ER).

The upgrade by Srboauto modernises the legacy 2S1 self-propelled artillery system for the Serbian Armed Forces. (Janes/Christopher Petrov)

Serbia's Srboauto has begun modernising the Serbian Army's 2S1 Gvozdika self-propelled artillery systems. The upgrade includes the ability to fire extended-range munitions, a defensive 7.62 mm machine gun for the commander, and a new fire-control system (FCS). An example of the upgrade was displayed at the Partner 2023 defence exhibition in Belgrade.

The 2S1 retains its 122 mm main armament, but with the development of extended-range munitions it can now engage targets at just over 20 km. The new FCS generates targeting data more quickly and enables the operators to act faster and more accurately than with the 2S1's standard FCS. The upgrade also introduces an uncooled thermal camera for the driver, which is mounted on the front of the hull, with daytime cameras fitted on the front and rear of the vehicle. The 2S1 also receives an open-top turret for a 7.62 mm machine gun that can be used for defensive purposes.

The vehicle has also received a new heating, ventilation, and cooling system to maximise crew comfort.

The Pasars-16 has received four Rada radars and is armed with one 40 mm cannon, two types of surface-to-air missiles, and a pair of anti-tank guided missiles. (Janes/Christopher Petrov)

Serbia's Military Technical Institute (MTI) has developed a new version of the Pasars-16 self-propelled anti-aircraft gun and missile system.

The new variant was debuted at the Partner 2023 defence exhibition in Belgrade and features Rada's RPS-42 radar, otherwise known as the Multi-Mission Hemispheric Radar.

Pasars-16 carries an array of weaponry. It is equipped with a single-barrel 40 mm L/70 Bofors autocannon believed to feature an electro-optical system for targeting. MTI is also developing programmable airburst munitions to improve the efficiency of the autocannon against small unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and quadcopters. The system is also equipped with a UAV jamming suite, above which is positioned a small Doppler radar that can be used to detect the speed of rounds exiting the cannon. This data can then be fed into the fire-control system to correct the aiming of the L/70.