US Army soldiers altered the course of the rocket while in flight, potentially allowing it to strike moving targets and operate with far greater precision.

The US Army’s Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS), the precision-guided, all-weather surface-to-surface rocket artillery system, reached a new milestone today at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico. The Lockheed Martin-developed GMLRS was successfully redirected in flight after being launched from a M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS).

The rocket’s target was altered while in flight, and the missile was rerouted to successfully destroy a moving target, Lockheed Martin announced in a media release. The course correction was made via a modular and adaptable Strigo datalink and the Remote Interceptor Guidance-360 (RIG-360)—each of which was “integrated through internal Lockheed Martin funding.”

According to the aerospace and defense firm, this capability demonstration served as a critical step in expanding the capabilities of the “combat-proven” GMLRS, without major changes to the existing platform.

“By delivering this level of integration between Lockheed Martin products such as GMLRS, RIG-360 and Strigo, we’re giving our warfighters the confidence and capability to succeed in the most complex, real‑world scenarios,” said Randy Crites, vice president at Lockheed Martin Advanced Programs. “Accelerating mission integration with trusted systems ensures faster, more effective outcomes on the modern battlefield and gives commanders the flexible options they need to respond to any threat.”

Course-Changing Missiles Give the US Army Flexibility in Targeting

The GMLRS, which can be fired from either the wheeled HIMARS or the tracked M270 MLRS rocket artillery systems, already employs GPS-aided inertial navigation systems, including an Inertial Measurement Unit, which ensures that it can deliver high accuracy and result in low collateral damage. The platform has a range exceeding 70 km (43 to 46 miles) in the standard variant, and up to 150 km (93.2 miles) in its most advanced variants. It maintains a reliability rating of more than 98 percent.

With the Strigo datalink and RIG-360, the GMLRS can be redirected to a new target even after it has been launched, providing a more flexible firing option as the battlefield situation changes. This will provide commanders on the ground the ability to make adjustments from a pre-programmed strike.

“The successful live-fire event supports the Army’s vision for networked precision fires by connecting sensors, launchers and targeting systems into a single integrated kill chain and provides soldiers with greater flexibility against dynamic threats,” Lockheed Martin wrote.

America Is Investing Heavily in Guided Rockets

The tests come after the defense giant also completed two operational tests of the ER-GMLRS in late September and early October at the White Sands Missile Range, including the Alternative Warhead and Unitary Warhead variants, from an M270A2 launcher. 

“The value of ER GMLRS is not only the additional range. It is the ability to add capability within an existing precision fires architecture—an approach that provides a common foundation for U.S. and international operators,” said Sabrina Barnes, vice president of Lockheed Martin Precision Fires Rockets, in a statement in mid-October.

In June, Lockheed Martin received a $3 billion contract to continue production of both the standard and extended-range GMLRS rounds under the fiscal year 2026 (FY26) procurement cycle. Primary manufacture and assembly of the ordnance is conducted at Lockheed Martin’s Camden, Arkansas, facility. The solid rocket motors, manufactured by L3Harris, are also produced in Camden.

The same targeting upgrades can be transferred to other systems, Lockheed Martin explained. Its datalink package is “directly applicable” to other platforms in the US Army’s arsenal, including precision fires rockets and missiles such as the ER-GMLRs and the Precision Strike Missile (PrSM), the next-generation, surface-to-surface ballistic missile developed by Lockheed Martin. It can also extend “networked fire” to an array of munitions.

About the Author: Peter Suciu

Peter Suciu regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. He has contributed to dozens of newspapers, magazines, and websites over a 30-year career in journalism, including Forbes and Clearance Jobs. He is based in Michigan. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author at Editor@nationalinterest.org.

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