The Avenger Air Defense System, designated AN/TWQ-1 under the Joint Electronics Type Designation System, is an American self-propelled surface-to-air missile system which provides mobile, short-range air defense protection for ground units against cruise missiles, unmanned aerial vehicles, low-flying fixed-wing aircraft, and helicopters.
The Avenger was originally developed for the United States Armed Forces and is currently used by the U.S. Army. The Avenger system was also used by the U.S. Marine Corps.
History
Originally developed as a private venture by Boeing in the 1980s, the Avenger was developed over a period of only 10 months from initial concept to delivery for testing to the U.S. Army. Initial testing was conducted in May 1984 at the Army's Yakima Training Center in the U.S. state of Washington. During testing three FIM-92 Stinger missiles were fired. During the first test firing the system achieved a direct hit while the Avenger was moving at .
The second test firing, conducted at night while stationary, also achieved a direct hit. The third test firing, conducted while on the move and in the rain, did not achieve a direct hit, but did pass within the missile's kill range, so the shot was scored as a tactical kill. All three test shots were conducted by operators who had never fired the missile before.
In 1987, the U.S. Army awarded the first production contract for 325 units. In 1989, the system began its Initial Operational Test and Evaluation (IOT&E) series of tests. The tests were conducted in two stages with Stage 1 consisting of acquisition and tracking trials at Fort Hunter Liggett, California, and Stage 2 consisting of live-fire testing at White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico. In February 1990, the Avenger system was deemed operationally effective and began replacing the M163 and M167 VADS. Two variants were deployed based on the Humvee chassis: M998 HMMWV Avenger and M1097 Heavy HMMWV Avenger.
The first operational deployment of the system occurred during the buildup for the Persian Gulf War. With the success of this deployment, the U.S. Army signed an additional contract for another 679 vehicles, bringing the total order to 1,004 units. The Avenger was again deployed in support of NATO operations during the Bosnian War. The Avenger system received widespread public exposure when it was placed around the Pentagon during the first anniversary of the September 11 attacks of 2001. The Avenger was also deployed during the U.S. military's operations in Afghanistan and Iraq.
In 2004, the U.S. Army had 26 battalions with Avenger Short-Range Air Defense (SHORAD) capabilities, but prioritization of other weapon systems during operations in Afghanistan and Iraq caused that number to drop to nine by early 2017, of which two were within the active force and seven were in the Army National Guard. Of the over 1,100 Avengers built only about 400 remain in service. In March 2018, in response to renewed Russian aggression since the 2014 annexation of Crimea, the 678th Air Defense Artillery Brigade deployed to Europe, the first time an American air defense unit had been sent there since the Cold War. The Army plans to deploy 72 Avenger sets to support U.S. European Command.
During protests regarding the Dakota Access Pipeline near Standing Rock, the North Dakota National Guard deployed an Avenger system as an observation platform. It was employed for over a month to observe areas within Morton County where numerous instances of criminal trespass and mischief had occurred. The unarmed Avenger was used to support public safety in southern Morton County. The Avenger system was removed in order to deescalate any tensions its presence may have caused.
In April 2017, an Avenger fired Stingers at two UAVs in a test on Eglin Air Force Base, marking the missile's first interception of a UAV target. While Stingers are usually loaded with direct impact warheads for use against aircraft and cruise missiles, these were equipped with proximity fuzes that enabled them to detonate near the target, giving them the ability to destroy small UAVs. Since small UAVs do not produce large heat signatures, the Avenger uses a laser rangefinder in combination with an antenna on the warhead to direct the missile on target. The Stingers shot down an MQM-170C Outlaw and a smaller, unidentified system, demonstrating the fuze's ability to detect and destroy moving mini-drones weighing as little as .
On 30 September 2020, the U.S. Army awarded General Dynamics a contract to deliver the Interim Maneuver SHORAD (IM-SHORAD), a Stryker armored vehicle fitted with heavier weapons to replace the outdated, unarmored, and undergunned Avenger Humvee.