Japan was given a preview of the stealthy JASSM-ER "standoff" missiles it is considering purchasing after U.S. officials said B-1B bombers launched the weapons Friday for the first time in combat during strikes on the Syrian regime.
The new Lockheed Martin Corp. air-launched cruise missile made its battlefield debut in the strikes when 19 of them were fired outside Syrian airspace by two B-1Bs that had targeted the Barzah Research and Development Center located on the outskirts of Damascus.
The firing of the Joint Air to Surface Standoff Missiles (JASSMs) was first reported by The Drive, a military and aviation website. U.S. officials later confirmed the launches of the extended version of the weapon, which joined 57 Tomahawk missiles that Pentagon officials said targeted the site.