Early last week, the Norwegian F-35A fighter aircraft assigned to 332 Squadron of the Royal Norwegian Air Force conducted the first practical launches of an AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM) air-to-air missile at the Halten proving ground northwest of the Orland air base.

The Norwegian Ministry of Defence selected the F-35A to fulfil its Future Combat Aircraft (FCA) requirement in November 2008.

The first Norwegian F-35s arrived in-country for permanent basing at Orland Air Base in November 2017.

Currently, the Norwegian government has funded the procurement of 40 of 52 F-35s, and subsequent authorization will occur on an annual basis.

The AMRAAM missile is operational on all F-35 variants. It’s the only radar-guided, air-to-air missile cleared to fly on the F-35.

The AMRAAM air-to-air missile is the world’s most sophisticated air dominance weapon. With more than 25 years of design, upgrades, testing and production, the AIM-120 missile continues to meet all warfighter requirements. Its capabilities have been fully demonstrated in over 4,200 test shots and 10 air-to-air combat victories.

According to Raytheon company, in the air-to-air role, no other missile compares to the AMRAAM missile. The weapon’s advanced active guidance section provides aircrew with a high degree of combat flexibility and lethality. Its mature seeker design allows it to quickly find targets in the most combat challenging environments.

Procured by 37 countries including the U.S., the combat-proven AMRAAM missile has been integrated onto the F-15, F-16, F/A-18, F-22, Typhoon, Gripen, Tornado and Harrier. The AIM-120C5 and AIM-120C7 missiles are fully integrated onto the F-35 and support the U.S. Marine Corp’s F-35B initial operational capability as the only air-to-air missile qualified on the F-35.