Army orders engineering services on Javelin anti-tank missile

Dec. 12 (UPI) -- The Army has awarded Raytheon Lockheed Martin Javelin JV $12 million for engineering services on the Javelin anti-tank missile.

The work is expected to be completed by Oct. 2019 and falls under Army 2018 procurement funds. Redstone arsenal is the contracting authority.

The FGM-148 Javelin is a man-portable anti-tank missile used by the U.S. and many allied countries. The missile has a "fire-and-forget" infrared guidance system that requires no course corrections from the operator after launch.

The Javelin can target moving vehicles, fixed fortifications, troops in the open and low-flying helicopters. It can be used for direct fire or in a pop-up mode that allows it to hit tanks from above to take advantage of their thinner top armor.

It has a soft-launch capability that limits its backblast, allowing it to be used from fortifications and buildings. The missile carries a tandem-charge high-explosive anti-tank warhead for defeating hardened targets.