Block 1a-2 Shell for Afghanistan

The latest Raytheon Excalibur precision projectile is cleared for operational use in Afghanistan, after proving its capability in firing tests carried out by the United States Army.

Once in Afghanistan, the advanced 1a-2 version of the M982 Excalibur 155mm guided artillery shell, originally developed by Raytheon and BAE Systems, will be used by both the US Marines and the US Army.

The Excalibur precision shell's meant to have the power to strike with limited collateral damage and, in 2007, it was judged by US Army officials as among that year's greatest military innovations.

The highly accurate weapon made its operational debut that same year in Iraq and

proved that its design philosophy worked - with more than 90 per cent of shells falling within a four metre range of the intended target.

Excalibur Block 1a-2 Precision Shell

The Excalibur Block 1a-2 precision shell, as will now be used in Afghanistan, has a firing range of up to 40 kilometres - approximately twice that of a standard artillery shell.

Each unit costs in the region of $80,000 and can be deployed around the clock and in all weathers.

According to Raytheon, the shell ‘...complements air-delivered precision when close air support is unavailable or not the best option'. As of October 2011, in excess of 500 Excalibur rounds had been fired either under trial conditions or in combat.