FIA2024 – MBDA’s advanced AI enabled missile simulator

At FIA2024 MBDA has unveiled an Orchestrike digital twin simulator, featuring real missile artificial intelligence (AI), hardware and network enabled datalinks, which will allow military users to immerse themselves in a unique simulated raid where the missiles react live and collaboratively to the developments of a tactical situation thanks to the Orchestrike AI tool

MBDA has made rapid advances to its Orchestrike collaborative weapons AI since it was unveiled at the 2023 Paris Air Show and has announced that the SPEAR family of weapons will be the first cruise missiles to feature AI-enhanced collaboration, while keeping a human operator, or third parties in the loop. Work has focused on refining the AI algorithms, advancing missile-to-missile datalinks, and on integrating both elements together and into SPEAR to enhance the capabilities of the cruise missile weapon system.

Orchestrike will enhance the performance of SPEAR missiles via AI-driven co-ordination, collaboration and co-operation between the missiles and the pilot controlling them from the launch aircraft. The Orchestrike AI will enable SPEAR missiles to react to threats and work together with the pilot to solve tactical problems, increasing both missile and platform survivability and overall mission performance. The missiles will only ever operate within the boundaries of operator input, ensuring legal and ethical utilisation at all times.

In the simulator real NED hardware will be used to transfer messages between four missile models with independent and distributed algorithms. According to the mission planning, the targets are given values according to their priority, Priority 4 in Value 1 down to Priority 1 which is Value 5. Each missile is given its Value target and if one is lost, this will be understood by the surviving missiles which will be automatically re-routed to ensure that the priority target is destroyed. A missile can be re-routed within 20 seconds from the target, or even less.

SPEAR is a family of network-enabled cruise missiles, which includes SPEAR-EW, developed by MBDA to meet the need of air forces to defeat and suppress enemy air defences by striking moving targets in all weathers, at stand-off ranges. Development firing from Typhoon is due to take place soon while launchers are being developed for the F-35 which will be able to carry eight SPEAR missiles within its weapon bays.

The SPEAR’s data links have been based on MBDA’s heritage missiles and with lessons learned from Storm Shadow. In the future Orchestrike can be extended to other munitions with network-enabled datalink capabilities.

Photo and graphics courtesy MBDA