The U.S. Air Force and U.S. Special Operations Command Europe conducted on Wednesday a live-fire demonstration of a capability meant to field long-range cruise missiles through airdrop procedures at Andoya Air Station in Norway.
The demonstration for Operational Series ATREUS used an MC-130J Commando II aircraft to deploy the Rapid Dragon Palletized Effects System containing Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile-Extended Range weapons on a Norwegian range, Air Force Materiel Command said Wednesday.
In April 2021, ATREUS started to carry out training on capabilities to provide U.S. and NATO allies with rapid response options. The demo in Norway is the seventh ATREUS iteration conducted in the European theater.
Dean Evans, Rapid Dragon program manager, said the demo reflects the team’s efforts to rapidly deploy systems to meet the needs of warfighters.
“The Rapid Dragon Experimentation Program is appropriately named, as it advanced rapidly from a concept on paper to a live fire using a developmental prototype in 24 months. Now less than three years from the program inception, Rapid Dragon is being used by SOCEUR in the Arctic Circle,” Evans noted.
Apart from the Air Force Strategic Development Planning and Experimentation office and SOCEUR, Lockheed Martin’s missiles and fire business, Systima Technologies, ASR-Pioneer, Naval Surface Warfare Center-Dahlgren, SOCOM Det 1, Air Force Special Operations Command and Norway’s Andoya Space Center also supported the event.
