The U.S. Navy and Air Force awarded Lockheed Martin the first production contract for the air-launched variant of the Long Range Anti-Ship Missile (LRASM) on July 25.
Worth $86.5 million, the contract will see the company deliver 23 missiles and engineering support.
Low-rate initial production Lot 1 is the first of several expected annual production lots that will deliver next-generation anti-ship missiles to the U.S. Navy and U.S. Air Force.
“This first production lot of LRASM brings a new level of capability to both the U.S. Air Force and the Navy,” said Mike Fleming , LRASM director at Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control. “LRASM enables our warfighters to prosecute even the most advanced enemy ships.”
LRASM is designed to detect and destroy specific targets within groups of ships by employing technologies that reduce dependence on intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance platforms, network links and GPS navigation in electronic warfare environments.
It is a precision-guided, anti-ship standoff missile based on the Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile – Extended Range (JASSM-ER). The air-launched variant provides an early operational capability for the U.S. Navy’s offensive anti-surface warfare Increment I requirement to be integrated onboard the U.S. Air Force’s B-1B in 2018 and on the U.S. Navy’s F/A-18E/F Super Hornet in 2019.