Aerojet Rocketdyne, a subsidiary of Aerojet Rocketdyne Holdings, Inc. AJRD, +0.18% announced today that its propulsion systems for Raytheon’s Standard Missile-3 Block IB (SM-3 IB) guided missile supported a NATO-led multinational naval operation off the northwest Scottish coast.

Formidable Shield 2017, a live-fire exercise supported by the U.S. Missile Defense Agency and U.S. Navy, which started Sept. 24 and ran through Oct. 17, included 14 ships, 10 aircraft and approximately 3,300 personnel from Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

During one of four planned events scheduled throughout the complex exercise, the SM-3 IB guided missile was launched from a U.S. destroyer to intercept a ballistic missile target. Aerojet Rocketdyne’s MK-72 booster and MK-104 dual-thrust rocket motor provided first- and second-stage propulsion for the SM-3 IB guided missile, and the company’s Throttling Divert and Attitude Control System precisely maneuvered the kinetic warhead to successfully impact the target.

An integrated air and missile defense exercise the magnitude of ‘Formidable Shield’ demands the best-of-the-best in terms of the systems utilized to test our Allied Forces’ ability to respond to real threats,

said Aerojet Rocketdyne CEO and President Eileen Drake.

Aerojet Rocketdyne employees across the nation work hard every day to ensure that we provide our warfighters with superior capabilities, and our role in this intense international test underscores trust and confidence in our products.

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