Northrop Grumman, in collaboration with the U.S. Air Force, recently successfully completed a stand-in attack weapon (SiAW) separation test from an F-16 Fighting Falcon.
The test was carried out on December 11, 2025 on the Eglin Air Force Base carried out.
The aim of the test was to validate the flight safety and aerodynamic performance of the SiAW during release from the aircraft, as well as the rocket’s progress towards integration with fifth generation platforms such as the F-35 Lightning II to demonstrate.
Safe separation from the F-16 represents an important milestone for the program and underscores the maturity of the system design.
According to Col. Gary E. Roos, senior materiel leader of the Adaptive Weapons Division at the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, the U.S. Air Force test is intended to provide validation of the weapon’s safe separation characteristics while generating essential data to optimize performance. He said the results strengthened SiAW’s ability to provide forces with a decisive advantage in the face of constantly evolving threats.
Chuck Johnson, vice president of advanced weapons systems at Northrop Grumman, emphasized that this milestone represents a fundamental step for the SiAW program. Based on the data obtained during the test, the company will continue further development of the missile with the overall goal of providing the armed forces with a decisive capability. “Our work ensures the U.S. Air Force has a highly survivable precision strike weapon that meets current and future mission requirements,” he said.
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About SiAW
The Stand-In Attack Weapon is an air-to-surface missile designed to rapidly engage and neutralize time-critical, high-value targets in highly contested environments. The system expands the U.S. Air Force’s target portfolio, including heavily defended ground targets.
Designed using digital development methodologies, SiAW leverages open architecture interfaces that enable rapid subsystem upgrades and agile integration of new capabilities. The missile is part of Northrop Grumman’s broad portfolio of advanced weapons systems, which includes armament, components, missiles, electronics and interceptor systems.
Source and images: Northrop Grumman. This content was created with the support of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
