US Army Signs $7.2 Billon Javelin Missile Contract
The U.S. Army has awarded Raytheon Missiles & Defense and Lockheed Martin’s Javelin Joint Venture (JJV) an indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity production contract for Javelin anti-tank guided missile systems. The contract has a maximum ceiling of $7.2 billion spanning the fiscal years 2023 to 2026. The procurement includes the Javelin weapon system and associated equipment and services.
The contract awarded also includes funding of up to $1.02 billion for support ramping up Javelin production with the aim to increase Javelin production to 3,960 units per year by late 2026. According to the US Army’s budget justification documents the per unit cost of the new Light Weight Command Launch Unit is expected to be around $350,000, with 187 LWCLU to be procured during FY 2024.
“We understand the importance of delivering Javelin and its proven capabilities to our customers worldwide so they’re prepared for the missions they face today and tomorrow,” said Dave Pantano, JJV vice president and Lockheed Martin Javelin program director. “This contract allows us to continue to evolve with our customers’ needs, while ramping up Javelin production to support the increased international interest for this multi-purpose weapon system.”
The production contract provides procurement of Javelin systems and support for US Foreign Military Sales customers too. JJV has over 20 international customers, with the latest being North Macedonia, and with demand increasing following the ongoing war in Ukraine the need to increase production capacity has become urgent. Andy Amaro, JJV president and Raytheon’s Javelin program director said:
“Javelin’s continued reliability and effectiveness has only bolstered demand for this battle-proven, fire-and-forget precision anti-armor weapon. Together with our U.S. Army customer and supplier partners, we share a singular focus – the timely delivery of this exceptional weapon system to ground forces worldwide.”
Deliveries are set to continue past the scope of this contract with the latest FGM-148F AUR missiles entering service in 2020 and FGM-148G is in development. When FMG-148G will enter service is unknown as the program suffered testing setbacks following a launch failure last year according to the Director of Operational Test and Evaluation (DOT&E)’s annual report. JJV say they have produced more than 50,000 missiles since the mid-1990s, along with 12,000 reusable Command Launch Units. Javelin is expected to remain un US service until 2050.