V System Composites, A Delaware County KIZ company located at University Technology Park announced that its corporate facility in Anaheim, California provided a composite structure to Raytheon Missile Systems for the Exo-atmospheric Kill Vehicle (EKV) interceptor that was successfully flight tested by the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) on Sept. 28.
V System developed and demonstrated a high-performance composite aft flange structure for the EKV under funding from the MDA and a contract from the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command (Huntsville, Ala.). As a result of this successful development, VSC received a production contract from the EKV system contractor, Raytheon Missile Systems, Tucson, Ariz, to produce the composite aft flange structure for flight tests and deployed missiles. VSC has delivered 61 production units through 2007.
MDA began its first system deployment of ground-based missile interceptors in July, 2004, and has subsequently deployed interceptors at Fort Greely, Ark., and Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif. The GBI with its EKV was designed for a “bullet-on-bullet” intercept and kinetic energy impact destruction of a long-range ballistic missile. The interceptors are part of the Ground-based Midcourse Defense element of the Ballistic Missile Defense System, an integrated system designed to destroy intercontinental ballistic missiles with threat warheads launched from enemy states before they can reach intended targets in the United States.
Raytheon’s earlier hit-to-kill successes with the GMD program occurred Oct. 2, 1999; July 13 and Dec. 3, 2001; March 15 and Oct. 14, 2002; and Sept 1, 2006. This most recent test marked the second time an operationally configured ground-based interceptor was launched from an operational GMD site at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif. The target was launched from Kodiak, Alaska.