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ATK, a leader in weaponised, special-mission aircraft, announced it has completed the first flight test for the Kingdom of Jordan's two CASA-235 light gunship aircraft. ATK was awarded a contract by King Abdullah II Design and Development Bureau (KADDB) of the Kingdom of Jordan to modify two of the country's CASA-235 transport aircraft into highly-capable and cost-effective special mission aircraft.
With modifications and ground testing complete, ATK began the flight test programme to validate the installed weapons and gun system. Upon successful completion of the test program, the aircraft will be delivered to the Kingdom of Jordan to support the mission of the Jordanian Armed Forces.
"We are pleased that KADDB has selected ATK to provide this unprecedented capability to the Jordanian Armed Forces," said Bill Kasting, Vice President and General Manager of ATK's Defense Electronic Systems division. "This programme will provide the Kingdom of Jordan with the first multi-mission gunship capability in the region. The start of the flight test is a major milestone achievement by the ATK and KADDB team."
In collaboration with KADDB, ATK developed and provided the system integration and aircraft modifications to turn a CASA-235 cargo plane into a multi-mission gunship. These modifications include installation of an electro-optical targeting systems, a laser designator, aircraft self-protection equipment, a synthetic aperture radar, and an armaments capability that can provide sustained and precise firepower in a variety of scenarios using Hellfire laser-guided missiles, 2.75-inch rockets, and a side-mounted M230 link-fed 30mm chain gun. The gun is automatically aligned to the target, cued by a camera in conjunction with the mission management and fire control solution. These capabilities are integrated with and controlled by ATK's Mission System, which provides both day and night reconnaissance and fire control capabilities, and the ability to acquire, monitor and track items of interest.
The gunship capability package is part of ATK's Special Mission Aircraft product portfolio, which provides affordable, responsive and advanced capabilities to customer-preferred platforms. ATK's expertise includes outfitting various aircraft – including the Alenia C-27J, CASA CN-235/295, Lockheed C-130, Bombardier Dash-8, Hawker Beechcraft King Air, Cessna Caravan and others – with integrated intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance and weapons employment capabilities.
