Lockheed Martin bags $3.2 billion US Air Force contract for JASSM and LRASM
A B-1B Lancer carrying an AGM-158 Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile. (Photo: US Air Force / Wikimedia Commons)
The US Air Force had awarded Lockheed Martin with a US$3.2 billion sole-source contract to produce joint air-to-surface standoff missiles (JASSM) and long-range anti-ship missiles (LRASM).
The contract focused on Lot 22 JASSM and LRASM and Foreign Military Sales (FMS) missiles for Japan, the Netherlands, Finland and Poland. As reported by Reuters, in May 2024, Poland signed a reported $735 million contact with the US for the supply of JASSM-ER (extended-range) missiles.
JASSMs – one of Lockheed’s first cruise missiles – are conventional, air-launched missiles, designed for the US Air Force and international allies, while LRASMs are precision-guided, long-range anti-ship missiles, designed to meet the demands of the US Air Force and Navy.
On 16 September 2024, Lockheed Martin unveiled its AGM-158 XR cruise missile concept, which it claimed would offer increased standoff attack range. The XR missile would also be compatible with the same platforms that deploy the JASSM and LRASM, including the F-35 Lightning II combat aircraft.
Related Equipment in Defence Insight
More from Air Warfare
-
Airbus to fly new CUAS UAV prototype this year
The counter-UAS prototype, named Low-cost Air Defence or ‘LOAD’, will be used to combat kamikaze UAS.
-
Boeing to remanufacture five more US Army MH-47G Block II Chinooks
The contract award, worth $240 million, is part of the ongoing effort by the US Army to modernise its Block II Chinook rotorcraft fleet.
-
Avalon 2025: Australia’s missile and ordnance plans excite companies
Australia’s Guided Weapons and Explosive Ordnance (GWEO) industrial plan is ambitious and promises big spending in an effort to create a local and sovereign capability. Companies at last week’s Australian International Airshow near Melbourne were making their pitches.