USN orders ESSM Block 2 support from Raytheon
ESSM launch from the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D Eisenhower. (Photo: USN/Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class J Alexander Delgado)
Raytheon gains contract modification to support ESSM Block 2 full-rate production requirements.
Raytheon has received a $269.03 million contract modification from US Naval Sea Systems Command to support FY2021-FY2023 Evolved Seasparrow Missile (ESSM) Block 2 full-rate production requirements, the DoD announced on 14 December.
Work will be completed by March 2025 at sites in Australia, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Greece, the Netherlands, Norway, Turkey and the US.
The RIM-162 ESSM entered service in 2004. Shephard Defence Insight notes that the missile is fitted with a 39kg blast fragmentation warhead, a mid-course update data link, a Mk 143 Mod 0 solid fuel rocket motor, and a semi-active radar homing system or a dual semi-active/active radar homing system.
Block 2 ESSMs include a new guidance system with a dual-mode active and semi-active radar.
Related Equipment in Defence Insight
More from Naval Warfare
-
![Anduril Australia wins A$1.7 billion Ghost Shark XL-AUV contract]()
Anduril Australia wins A$1.7 billion Ghost Shark XL-AUV contract
The vessels are expected to deliver a major boost to Australia’s undersea warfare capabilities, with production set to start immediately.
-
![Royal Canadian Navy will start operating class 2 UAVs in 2028]()
Royal Canadian Navy will start operating class 2 UAVs in 2028
Acquired under Canada’s Department of National Defence ISTAR UAS project, the drones will be deployed from the Halifax-class frigates.
-
![Newest US Coast Guard cutters go after Chinese vessels sailing in the Arctic]()
Newest US Coast Guard cutters go after Chinese vessels sailing in the Arctic
Cutters Earl Cunningham and Storis have been monitoring five Beijing research vessels navigating in the North Pole.
-
![US Navy selects 25 companies for up to $1.9 billion nuclear submarine contract]()
US Navy selects 25 companies for up to $1.9 billion nuclear submarine contract
The multi-award contract will support the scheduled repair and maintenance of nuclear-powered attack submarines at the US Navy’s primary public shipyards.
