The new PrSM munition is believed to have been used in an attack on an Iranian school, raising concerns over possible design flaws.
The US military destroyed its entire stockpile of untested precision strike missiles (PRSMs) at the start of its attack on Iran last month, a US military official has said.
Short to medium ballistic missiles developed by Lockheed Martin are set to replace the aging Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS). The new weapon had completed its prototype phase only last year, and was fielded without a full test cycle. Media reports indicate the new missiles were involved in at least one mass casualty incident during the attack on Iran, which killed about 21 people at a school and sports hall in the southern Iranian city of Lamard.
Jimmy Arter, an officer at Fort Sill, said the U.S. Army unit equipped with the new missiles completely depleted its inventory at the start of the conflict. The official made the comments at the Fire Symposium, which is being held at the Oklahoma Fire Innovation Science and Technology Accelerator (FISTA).
“We shot down our entire inventory of PRSMs at the beginning of the war, and we have already recovered more,” Arter said, as quoted by Aviation Week. Arter claimed that the attack on Iran had proven the capabilities of the new missile and that there was no need for any further testing of the PRSM.
Aviation Week reported that a US Army spokesperson later said that several PRSM weapons remained in the Army’s inventory. The Pentagon ordered 130 before fiscal year 2024 and 250 in 2025, yet it is unclear how much of the ammunition was delivered.
The PRSM missile was probably used in the February 28 Lamard attack, as The New York Times reported at the beginning of hostilities, citing visual evidence examined by weapons experts. The NYT said that, since the missile was new, it was difficult to assess whether it had been attacked or not. “Intentionally” or resulting from design defects of unused munitions or faulty intelligence.
The Pentagon denied any involvement, claiming that it did not attack any targets in Lamard that day. US Central Command pointed the finger at Tehran and claimed that the ammunition seen in footage of the attack was “Dimensions and silhouette consistent with the Iranian Howzeh cruise missile.” However, the NYT doubled its assessment last week, citing experts who said the ammunition lacked key characteristics attributed to the Howies and resembled the PrSM.
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