TUCSON, Dec. 11 (UPI) -- U.S. company Raytheon announced a software upgrade to its AIM-9X Sidewinder missile has increased the technology's targeting capabilities.
Raytheon recently evaluated a software upgrade to its Sidewinder infrared-guided missile targeting a moving test boat in the Gulf of Mexico. Officials say the Sidewinder, fired from a U.S. Air Force F-16C fighter aircraft, successfully sank the target boat.
The test of the AIM-9X Sidewinder, an advanced air-to-air missile, successfully demonstrated that with the new software upgrade, the missile technology proved capable of acquiring an air-to-surface target.
"With a software upgrade, AIM-9X retains its air-to-air capabilities and gains an air-to-surface capability," Harry Schulte, Raytheon Missile Systems vice president of Air Warfare Systems, said in a statement.
"AIM-9X now has the potential to take on an additional mission at a very affordable cost."
