On Monday, October 13, 2025, U.S. company BAE Systems Inc. (part of British BAE Systems) announced that, together with US Army DEVCOM-AC (Combat Capabilities Development Command Armaments Center), it conducted a test of the new new precision guided projectile Scorpio-XR for 155 mm, 52-caliber howitzers, in accordance with the NATO JBMoU (Joint Ballistics Memorandum of Understanding) standard.
Photos: BAE Systems Inc.
According to the press release, the test campaign achieved better range performance than expected. Interestingly, Scorpio-XR is the new designation for the ammunition previously known as the XM1155-SC (SubCaliber).
“We continue to push the boundaries of precision in long-range artillery systems and will continue to build on this success and explore the full potential of how this technology will impact the future of artillery systems,” said Jason Casciotti, program director for Combat Systems Development at BAE Systems. “The successful demonstration of the Scorpio-XR rounds is a major achievement for the program, and we’re proud of the progress we’ve made.”
This important milestone in the program demonstrates BAE Systems’ ability to collaborate with the US Army to develop guided artillery projectile technology and deliver key firing innovations. Combined with advanced sensors, Scorpio-XR will be able to achieve precision at ranges more than twice those of currently used standard artillery ammunition (potentially over 70 km – editor’s note) and improve the effectiveness of 155 mm artillery systems at the division level in frontline areas.
The advanced long-range precision munition, now known as Scorpio-XR – a name that reflects its enhanced capabilities, extended range, and its exceeding of the US Army’s minimum requirements for brigade- and division-level artillery – has already been successfully fired to precisely engage designated point targets and strike them at record distances from various 155 mm artillery systems, ranging from 39-caliber to 58-caliber.
The first tests of the subcaliber ammunition, then designated XM1155-SC, were reported on March 29, 2023. They were conducted with a view to the planned 155 mm next-generation XM1299 ERCA (Extended Range Cannon Artillery) howitzers; however, that program was canceled, according to information from March 11, 2024.
The XM1155-SC ammunition was developed for the ERAP (Extended-Range Artillery Projectile) program. In May 2020 a competing solution was presented by Raytheon Missiles & Defense (now part of RTX Corporation), whose range is said to exceed 100 km thanks to a ramjet engine. It was developed in cooperation with the Dutch research institute TNO (Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research).
In early 2022, the predecessor to the Scorpio-XR concept – the hypersonic extended-range round HVP-ER (Hyper Velocity Projectile–Extended Range) — successfully destroyed a target at a distance of over 110 km.
Currently, the U.S. Army is running a program, resumed after a temporary pause, codenamed SPH-M (Self-Propelled Howitzer Modernization). Bidders include American Rheinmetall Vehicles, BAE Bofors, Hanwha Defense USA, General Dynamics Land Systems, and Elbit Systems USA. BAE Systems Inc. is represented in this case by BAE Bofors and is offering an M109-52 howitzer prototype that is undergoing testing with the U.S. Army.
#NEWS: BAE Systems’ Scorpio-XR extended range artillery projectile strikes a decisive blow.
Read more: https://t.co/hwkXlulE2T#ScorpioXR #DefenseInnovation pic.twitter.com/tIi0zFBk7W
— BAE Systems, Inc. (@BAESystemsInc) October 13, 2025
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