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Raytheon unveils details of its proposal for the US Navy/NATO ESSM Next Significant Variant

30th January 2026 - 11:32 GMT | by Flavia Camargos Pereira in Kansas City, Missouri

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ESSM Block 2 missile. (Photo: US Navy)

In an exclusive interview with Shephard, Raytheon’s VP of Shipboard Missiles disclosed what improvements the company plans to offer for the Sea Sparrow NSV.

RTX Raytheon has been working on a proposal for the Next Significant Variant (NSV) of the Evolved Sea Sparrow Missile (ESSM). During an interview with Shephard, the company disclosed details of its future offer to the US Navy and the NATO Sea Sparrow Project Office (NSPO).

As the developer and provider of the ESSM Block 1 and 2, the supplier intends to come up with a new, cost-effective, more straightforward way to produce an upgraded version of the missile. The suggested variant is planned to have an open architecture design and provide increased manoeuvrability and range.

“This approach really

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Flavia Camargos Pereira

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Flavia Camargos Pereira


Flavia Camargos Pereira is a North America editor at Shephard Media. She joined the company …

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