BAE Systems Precision Targeting System Begins Final Testing; Company Declares System Ready for Production

CHINA LAKE, Calif.--(Business Wire)--
BAE Systems has entered the final phase of testing on its Advanced Precision
Kill Weapon System (APKWS), a technology that increases the accuracy and
cost-effectiveness of airborne weapon systems. The tests seek to confirm the
production readiness of the APKWS rocket and its ability to meet Navy and Marine
Corps requirements, including safely launching from a helicopter, and reliably
acquiring, tracking, and hitting laser-designated targets.

In the most recent testing, a laser-guided rocket fired from a U.S. Marine Corps
Cobra helicopter hit a stationary target. This test firing initiated a sequence
of more than 20 firings that will comprise the program`s final test phase, to be
completed by the end of 2009.

"Shooting APKWS is just like shooting a conventional 2.75-inch rocket, except
the APKWS goes exactly where it`s told to go," said LCDR John "Doc" Dougherty,
Navy APKWS deputy program manager.

With completion of this contractor test flight, BAE Systems and the Navy are
preparing for Navy demonstration test flights and full government qualification
testing. APKWS will enter production in 2010.

"When we enter production, we expect to be the only fully-qualified laser-guided
2.75-inch rocket in the U.S. inventory," said John Watkins, director of missile
and munitions solutions at BAE Systems in Nashua, New Hampshire, where the APKWS
guidance section is produced. "We are very proud that APKWS will be in the hands
of the warfighters next year."

APKWS has hit its targets 18 times since September 2002, including five shots
from helicopters involving several air crews and various mission scenarios. The
low-cost, low-yield precision munition system turns a standard 2.75-inch
unguided rocket to a smart, highly precise laser-guided missile. Because it uses
standard launchers, the system requires no platform integration or aircraft
modifications, and the mid-body design of its guidance section enables use of
existing warheads, fuses, and rocket motors.

APKWS can be fired from any helicopter that can launch 2.75-inch rockets,
including the AH-1 Cobra, UH-1 Huey, OH-58 Kiowa Warrior, and AH-64 Apache.

The Navy assumed acquisition executive oversight of the program in 2008 and has
fully funded it for production. BAE Systems has been the APKWS prime contractor
since 2006.

About BAE Systems

BAE Systems is a premier global defense, security and aerospace company
delivering a full range of products and services for air, land and naval forces,
as well as advanced electronics, security, information technology solutions and
customer support services. With approximately 105,000 employees worldwide, BAE
Systems' sales exceeded £18.5 billion (US $34.4 billion) in 2008.

BAE Systems
Karen Spiller, +1 603 885 2818
Mobile: +1 603 566 2090
karen.spiller@baesystems.com
or
Shannon Smith, +1 703 907 8257
Mobile: +1 703 967 3854
shannon.n.smith@baesystems.com

www.baesystems.com

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