The Army will begin testing smart grenade launchers next year

A defense corporation will be providing the Army with some upgraded, high-tech weaponry to take out enemies hiding behind obstructions. Orbital ATK, also manufacturer of space and aviation products, has developed a “smart” grenade launcher known as the XM25 Counter Defilade Target Engagement System. Orbital ATK calls the XM25 a “next-generation, semi-automatic weapon designed for effectiveness against enemies protected by walls, dug into foxholes or hidden in hard-to-reach places.” The XM25 includes a program called the Target Acquisition/Fire Control (TA/FC), a mechanism that helps soldiers to shoot accurately. It allows the XM25 to digitally communicate with the bullet, increasing a soldier’s hit probability by 300 to 500 percent. The TA/FC uses “thermal capability with direct-view optics, laser rangefinder, compass, fuze setter, ballistic computer, laser pointer and illuminator, and an internal display.” According to Orbital ATK, a soldier with basic rifleman abilities simply has to place the aim point on a designated target and activate the laser rangefinder. The TA/FC activates and provides an adjusted aim point, which is then put on a target. The last thing the soldier does is fire the weapon. “Target information is communicated to the chambered 25 mm round. As the round speeds down range, it measures the distance traveled and bursts at the pre-programmed distance,” as was written in the XM25 fact sheet.