Pentagon Signs 7-Year Missile Deals to Lift PAC-3 Output to 2,000 a Year
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Aug 28
Pentagon Signs 7-Year Missile Deals to Lift PAC-3 Output to 2,000 a Year
3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Aug 28
Summary
$22.9 billion in new multiyear contracts and framework deals will expand production across seven U.S. weapons systems, with the Pentagon locking in longer-term demand for RTX and Lockheed Martin programs.
PAC-3 interceptor output is set to rise from 600 to 2,000 annually, THAAD from 96 to 400, AMRAAM to 1,900, SM-6 to more than 500, and Tomahawk production from about 60 to over 1,000.
The push follows strains exposed by the Iran conflict, which depleted precision-munition and air-defense stocks, prompted Gulf allies to warn of low interceptor inventories, and forced the Pentagon to shift THAAD and Patriot batteries from South Korea.
Pentagon officials argue the problem is production depth rather than weapon performance, after decades of year-to-year procurement left manufacturers uncertain about demand and limited capacity growth.
Full capacity will still take time, and Congress must keep funding the agreements; the broader procurement system also remains slow, with major U.S. weapons programs averaging more than 12 years from concept to fielding.