Rainbow1910
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To clarify, SeaRAM is just Phalanx with the 20mm cannon replaced by an 11 cell RAM launcher, while the full 21 shot launcher is known as the Mk 49 Guided Missile Launching System (GMLS). The previous rumour was two 21 shot launchers likely where the Phalanx slots are, but it seems that never came to pass.To be honest, if I had a ship with AEGIS, I'd want the single 21 shot launcher as well.
Having 2x 11 shot ones is actually less effective, since they wouldn't be tied directly to AEGIS I don't think. And you'd only have 11 shots per side if they were in the same spots as have been shown in past renderings.
Having the 21 shot launcher up high with wide arcs gives the best solution I think.
The biggest issue with the model we see is physically getting the missile reloads from their storage area all the way up to that elevated position where the launcher itself is present.Note - it looks like the 'official way' to set this all up based on how I see things is to open the rear cover, rotate the launcher fore/aft, setup the working platform on the mount, setup the overhead rail and chain fall, then load/unload cannisters.
I suspect it could be done by hand without the platform in a pinch to get a couple tubes loaded up in a real emergency.
Rules would have to be bent/broken for that though...and there'd have to be a really good operational reason to do so.
Noah seems to think it might be JAGM as well, which I think is fairly accurate. Lockheed Martin has a number of different navalized JAGM launchers available and the USN is considering fitting them to their Burke class destroyers as a cheap and low impact layer to their small boat/anti-drone defences. It is possible that the launcher we see on the model is a placeholder, a custom RCN model or something like the below decks mount in the right hand first image, but mounted above deck.No idea either.
The newest variants of JAGM have a 16km~ range and a multi-mode seeker that permit attacking stationary or moving targets even in visual/EW degraded environments. Price tag looks to be something like $325,000 USD per shot roughly, 1/3~ of a RAM shot cost. If we could get something like 27 JAGM per 3x3 launcher (with 1 slot each used for exhaust), that would give the RCD a load of 54 fire and forget missiles at a relatively low cost to deal with closer range targets.
Seems like a pretty good boost in capability to me?


