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The laser guided SPIKE was developed by the US Navy Weapons
Division of the Naval Air Warfare Center, with assistance of
DRS Technologies. Originally designed as a man-portable weapon
for the Marines and the Navy’s special operations force,
Spike fills a critical niche for a low-cost, lightweight guided
weapon for U.S. ground forces. It’s potential applications
go beyond ground combat; it is a realistic armament choice for
tactical unmanned aerial vehicles and a force-protection weapon
to defend surface ships from small-boat swarms or light aircraft.
The missile uses Semi-Active Laser (SAL) seeker to engage laser
designated targets from a distance of two miles.
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Each Spike missile weighs 5.3 lb (2.4 kg) and is 25 in. (63.5
cm) long. The missile performed its first controlled flights
in 2005. SPIKE will offer safer, more accurate alternative to
rocket propelled grenades (RPGs). It is designed to be relatively
inexpensive (about US $4,000 a piece) therefore offering cost
effective alternative to the much more expensive man-portable
Javelin anti-tank missile, which costs about $75,000 a piece).
The compact system is tailored for man-portable operations.
Three missiles and a launcher could fit in a standard military
backpack. Due to its light weight, Spike is considered to arm
unmanned systems. According to John Baylouny, vice president
of DRS Technologies, Spike missile could be used on almost any
UAV and that "future spirals" in the program are expected
to involve putting Spike on unmanned aircraft. Spike has already
been tested with the DRS Sentry HP drone at Eglin AFB, Florida,
as part of US Air Force UAV Battlelab evaluation.
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