US Air Force orders latest AMRAAM missiles worth $1.2 billion

News, US June 22, 2023 , by IRIA No Comments

The U.S. Air Force awarded a $1.2 billion contract to the U.S.-based arms manufacturer RTX, until recently known as Raytheon Technologies, to produce Advance Medium Range Air-to-Air Missiles (AMRAAM). A share of the newly produced missiles would also be sent to Ukraine.

According to a statement released by the United States Department of Defense, the contract was aimed at producing new missiles for the U.S. Air Force and Navy.

The contract also involves the production of defense equipment for 18 other countries, under the Foreign Military Sales Act. This includes Bahrain, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Finland, Hungary, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Norway, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, Ukraine, and the United Kingdom. The Foreign Military Sales account for 39% value of the contract.

“This contract provides for the production of AMRAAM missiles, AMRAAM Telemetry System, initial and field spares, and other production engineering support activities,” the U.S. Department of Defense said in the statement. RTX is expected to complete the order by the end of January 2027.

RTX also released a statement saying that the latest contract was awarded for the D3 and C8 variants of the AMRAAM missiles. The latest variants of the missiles have been termed F3R variants, which stand for Form, Fit, Function, and Refresh.

*^{An F-15EX Eagle II fires an AIM-120 AMRAAM missile in a Nov. 29, 2022, test of the fighter’s added weapons stations. (Image Credit: John Simmons/U.S. Air Force)}*

With improved software and hardware, the new AMRAAM variants are equipped with better guidance systems. RTX said that the missiles produced under the recent contract would be the fifth production lot of AMRAAM missiles.

According to Paul Ferraro, president of Air Power for Raytheon, the company recognizes “AMRAAM is the most advanced, combat-proven missile, and we owe it to the warfighters to ensure they have the technology they need when they need it”. He further added that “Be it air-to-air or surface-to-air, AMRAAM continues its proud legacy with greater power and precision than ever before with this contract.”

AIM-120 AMRAAM

The AIM-120 advanced medium-range air-to-air missile (AMRAAM) is a new generation air-to-air missile. It has an all-weather, beyond-visual-range capability. The AMRAAM has been in use by the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy as well as several American allied forces. In the air, AMRAAM is compatible with F-15, F-16, F-22, F-35, and F/A-18 fighter jets.

*^{National Advanced Surface to Air Missile System developed by Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace and Raytheon. (Image Credit: Raytheon)}*

The missile can also be deployed using the National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System (NASAMS). Ukraine would use its AMRAAM missile through the NASAMS batteries that have been provided by the U.S. The U.S. Army in December 2022 also awarded RTX another contract worth up to $1.2 billion to deliver six NASAM batteries to Ukraine.

Raytheon to RTX

Producer of the AMRAAM missiles and several other notable defense products the U.S.-based defense manufacturer, Raytheon Technologies, recently rebranded itself as RTX. This is the second time that the company has rebranded itself in three years. Earlier, Raytheon merged with aerospace manufacturer United Technologies Corporation to form Raytheon Technologies. To further simplify the company’s brand, Raytheon Technologies shed its century-old name to adopt the three-letter moniker, RTX. “It is a nod to the past and a nod to the future,” Chief Executive Greg Hayes said as he announced the new name for the company.