POINT BLANK – Where Park Glider Meets ATGM

January 20, 2023

A few years back I wrote an article for The National Interest where I discussed how the previous years of conflict in Afghanistan and Iraq had demonstrated the need for a cheap, lightweight guided infantry weapon capable of being used in a multitude of roles. Western forces had got into the habit of using things like Javelin anti-tank missiles for taking out individual enemy positions. I mean it works really well, but it is kind of expensive.

Since then we have seen the large deployment of what are termed as “loitering munitions”. The Armenian-Azerbaijan War in 2020 saw these used in considerable numbers, and to good effect, though they were generally larger designs more akin to a large remote controlled aircraft.

The wars since then, principally in Ukraine, have seen a number of weapons deployed that have been purposely designed for the role, such as Switchblade, or else the converting of civilian drones to carry and drop payloads such as hand grenades or mortar bombs.

But Israeli defence contractor IAI have just announced they are developing a new weapon for the US Department of Defense that probably best fulfils the role I was envisaging; POINT BLANK – a hand-launched guided infantry missile.

The weapon is essentially like a big electric park glider similar to what people fly for fun…with a warhead. And IAI has just signed a multi-year, multi-million-dollar contract with the US Department of Defense to develop and deliver the new weapon.

POINT BLANK is an electro-optically guided missile, that can be carried in a soldier’s backpack. The munition is launchable by hand, an advantage over other, current systems that normally require a specialist launching system. It is capable of being operated by that single soldier and is recoverable, dropping down in a controlled manner to be caught if necessary.

 

The munition has a top speed of 178mph (286km/h) and a maximum altitude of 1,500 feet (c.460m). This means POINT BLANK can be used for real time reconnaissance missions as well for attack, plus can be recalled should the target no longer need engaging. And it does all this with an all-up weight of 15lbs (6.8kgs) and a total length of three feet (0.9m).

IAI haven’t specified what the warhead will be, but I suspect it will have a multifunction one or possibly swappable payloads for different roles. The utility of a cheap, multipurpose, non-line-of-sight precision weapon that can be used right down to the individual level is going to be a game changer, and I suspect that POINT BLANK, and the many derivatives that it will inspire, are going to become a standard feature in the near future with infantry forces all across the globe.

Indeed, IAI are planning to deliver the first prototypes to the DoD for testing and operational evaluation some point this year.

So, keep your eyes open, because these will be coming to the battlefield soon.

Sources/Related:

https://www.iai.co.il/news-media/press-releases/israel-aerospace-industries-unveils-point-blank-hand-launched-electro

Musings on the Need for a Cheap Guided Infantry Weapon

We May Have the First Case of a Robot Deliberately Killing Humans

US Army Planning on Integrating Anti-Drone Lasers on New Squad Vehicles

Guns-A-Go-Go; The Boeing Vertol ACH-47A

Guns-A-Go-Go; The Boeing Vertol ACH-47A

The histories of the US intervention in Vietnam generally start in March 1965, when US Marines stormed ashore at Da Nang…to be met by a bevy of Vietnamese beauties holding signs saying: “Welcome Gallant Marines”. But in fact, the United States had been deploying...

Myanmar Military Reeling From Attacks by Anti-Coup Forces

Myanmar Military Reeling From Attacks by Anti-Coup Forces

Well, it is kicking off in Myanmar. Big time. I have occasionally reported on the ongoing conflict in that bighted for years, indeed I’ve even conducted humanitarian work in some of the conflict areas in the country. But I have never seen anything close to what is...

The Long War Pt.5; The Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army

The Long War Pt.5; The Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army

As the conflict in Myanmar, otherwise known as Burma, has seen a lot of important developments recently I thought it might be useful to resume this series on the Ethnic Armed Organizations (EAOs) fighting against the military junta who seized power in a coup in 2021....

Globemaster Mini Me; The McDonnell Douglas YC-15

Globemaster Mini Me; The McDonnell Douglas YC-15

In my previous “Forgotten Aircraft” article I covered Boeing’s YC-14 and talked about how in the early 1970’s the United States Air Force (USAF) had expressed an interest in acquiring a replacement for the Lockheed C-130 Hercules. For this they initiated the Advanced...

Meet the Ratel S Anti-Tank Drone

Meet the Ratel S Anti-Tank Drone

A few years ago I wrote an article, followed up later by a video, about the need for a cheap guided  anti-vehicle-and-position weapon for infantry. My reasoning was that for many years now most militaries have ended up resorting to using anti-tank missiles for this...