REDSTONE ARSENAL, Ala. - The U.S. Army has asked industry for a lighter version of its planned autonomous missile launcher and wants prototypes ready to fire live munitions during the Talisman Sabre 2027 exercise in Australia in August 2027. The Program Executive Office for Missiles and Space released a request for solutions briefs for the Common Autonomous Multi-Domain Launcher-Lite (CAML-Lite) on Oct. 15, with responses due Oct. 23. The Army plans to invite selected firms to submit full prototype proposals on Nov. 6 and expects to award prototype agreements around Dec. 18, 2026.
Each prototype must be a complete system with its own mobility, launcher and reload capability. It must be able to operate in convoy, follow waypoints on its own, or be driven remotely or by a crew. The Army says it has limited funding for the demonstration and expects companies to share costs, with larger company investment counting in a bidder’s favor. Each agreement will include a priced option for one to six additional prototypes for testing with soldiers, including the 25th Infantry Division in Hawaii, and possible purchases for international partners such as Australia. After Talisman Sabre, the Army expects to select one or more vendors and move into a second phase focused on production-representative prototypes.
The broader CAML program may replace Typhon launcher used for the service's Mid-Range Capability effort, which utilizes Tomahawk and SM-6 missiles. The Typhon system is large and cumbersome to operate on the battlefield, which is where smaller CAML launchers could may be used as an alternative.
In August, the Army awarded the Georgia Tech Research Institute an agreement worth up to $33.4 million to serve as weapon systems integrator for CAML prototypes.
