The U.S. military today conducted a flight test demonstrating new interoperability between the Patriot and Terminal High Altitude Area Defense systems as it responds to an urgent requirement from commanders in South Korea for improved Patriot-THAAD integration to defend against North Korean ballistic missile threats. The Missile Defense Agency announced the conclusion of Flight Test Patriot Weapon System (FTP)-27 at White Sands Missile Range, NM, that featured an intercept of a ballistic missile target by the newest variant of the Patriot missile guided by a THAAD radar. The test demonstrated the ability to expand the area a Patriot battery can defend by using THAAD's radar--which has a much longer range than Patriot's organic sensor. The Patriot system was able to launch its interceptor sooner and engage the threat missile earlier in flight, a capability MDA calls "launch on remote." MDA today also disclosed a prior flight test failure related to this Patriot-THAAD integration project when a Patriot Missile Segment Enhancement failed to intercept a ballistic missile target on Feb. 20 at White Sands due to a software error. Today's intercept reflected six months of remedial work to correct the problem.
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