Over the last three decades, the advancement in cost effective Precision Guided Munitions (PGM) has become a notably pressing issue for the global defence industry. PGMs play a critical role, aiming for increased accuracy and decreased logistical challenges over traditional missiles, whilst also being economical.
Australia’s contribution on this stage is the Razer low-cost PGM, designed and developed by BAE Systems Australia. Publicly unveiled for the first time in 2023, the Razer program is a concerted effort to locally manufacture a guided munitions kit, suitable for lightweight platforms and small-scale operations.
Razer is an air-launched, modular and guided system that is designed to transform a 40-50-kg standard non-guided munition into a precision strike weapon. The Razer system consists of a wing and tail kit that assists with range and in-flight stability, this unit is also equipped with a GPS/inertial navigation system (INS) guidance control and navigation system.
According to BAE Systems, Razer can be operated from uncrewed combat air vehicles (UCAV) and rotary wing aircraft, providing the system with a unique edge over the majority of legacy PGMs, which are mostly compatible with high-speed jet aircraft.
Manufactured in Australia, BAE Systems is also cooperating with the Commonwealth of Australia’s Guided Weapons and Explosive Ordnance (GWEO) Enterprise to further the development of Razer. The latest iteration of the Razer LGPGM was put through its paces and successfully completed several trials in January 2025, with more trials expected to follow.
“Razer can meet urgent local and overseas demand for low-cost sovereign munition solutions that could be deployed from the air. It could deliver a powerful and affordable battlefield strike capability for users globally,” former CEO of BAE Systems Australia, Ben Hudson, stated.
Razer forms part of a wider global family of PGMs, developed by nations in coordination with their defence industries on the lookout for conventional, inexpensive and modular strike capabilities. The Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM), produced by Boeing in the United States, converts unguided projectiles between 200 and 900kg into GPS guided weapons.
Since production of JDAM commenced in 1998, Boeing has produced over 500,000 JDAM kits. Conventional JDAMs range in length from approximately 2.36 to 3.88m, weigh between 250 and 970kg, and have diameters of around 43 to 64cm. JDAMs have a range between 28 and 45km.
JDAM contains a tail control system and a GPS-aided INS. The navigation system coordinates with the aircraft system to obtain position and velocity vectors. The latest winged variant of JDAM, the Joint Direct Attack Munition-Extended Range (JDAM-ER), entered service with the Royal Australian Air Force in 2015. Bloomberg reported in February 2023 that the United States provided JDAM-ER systems to Ukraine, as part of its US $1.85 billion (approx. AU $3.01 billion) of military aid package.
Mini Akıllı Mühimmat (MAM) meaning “smart micro munition”, developed by Turkish defence firm, Roketsan, is another LCPGM within this category. Weighing in at 22kg, the system has been developed specifically to suit Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV), light attack and fighter aircraft.
With a strike range of 15km, MAM utilises a hybrid guidance system that combines laser targeting with INS. The system is currently in service in multiple Middle Eastern, European and North African countries.
Further, the Korean GPS-Guided Bomb (KGGB) is a glide kit developed by LIG Nex1 and the Agency for Defence Development in South Korea (SK). It is capable of converting 200kg bombs into precision, strike munitions. This LCPGM also utilises GPS and INS to increase accuracy in strikes and has a range of approximately 30km.
The KGGB is routinely deployed on fighter aircraft such as SK’s FA-50, contributing to the nation’s air-to surface capabilities. KGGB is currently operated by the Royal Saudi Air Force, the Republic of Korea Air Force and the Royal Thai Air Force.
All of the above systems have a shared intent of improving strike precision without reliance on expensive missile systems. Unlike traditional PGMs, such as SK’s KGGB, Razer is being developed to be launched from UCAVs and aerial vehicles such as helicopters as opposed to large, high-speed aircraft. This unique aspect of the Razer system expands its versatility and platform compatibility.
This reality has been recognised by the CEO of BAE Systems, “Currently, there is significant gap between inexpensive, short-range, land-based weapons of this calibre and the expensive, long-range, air-launched weapon systems,” stated Hudson. “The ability to deploy Razer from a number of different airborne platforms, raises its profile and is aimed at bridging this gap.”
According to Andrew Gresham, Managing Director of Defence Delivery at BAE Systems Australia, the development of Razer aligns with Australia’s drive to further its sovereign guided weapons capabilities, adding that it will “establish and grow the country’s domestic capability and export market.”
Razer is Australia's entry into a new generation of LCPGM designed for lightweight platforms and flexible uses. The future of the system is still under construction.