During a demonstration of the Advanced Battle Management System (ABMS), an adapted M109 Paladin 155mm howitzer shot down a BQM-167 Skeeter air target simulating a Russian cruise missile, Breaking Defense reported.
According to the American publication, the corresponding exercise of the US Air Force (Air Force) took place on September 3 at the White Sands missile range in New Mexico.
General Glen Van Herk, head of the United States' Northern Command, said the demonstration convinced him that artificial intelligence (AI) -controlled software systems would indeed be able to advise on how to fight rivals such as China and Russia.
Will Roper, US Air Force procurement director, separately assessed the shooting down of an aerial target with a new super-high-speed projectile that can fly at Mach five. “Tanks that shoot down cruise missiles are cool, video games, fantastic,” said the leader.
In total, six BQM-167 Skeeter targets were involved in the exercises, for the destruction of which, in addition to an adapted howitzer, launched from the F-16 Fighting Falcon fighter and the MQ-9 Reaper drone AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles were used.
Thus, the United States conducted exercises simulating a military conflict with Russia.
In September 2019, the commander of the US Air Force in Europe, Jeffrey Harrigan, announced that the Pentagon had a plan to break through the multilayer air defense (air defense) of the Kaliningrad region.
In August 2018, Harrigan claimed that the United States has been actively collecting data on Russian military equipment and its capabilities in Syria over the past year and a half.
