By Dylan Malyasov
The U.S. Department of Defense has awarded Raytheon a contract worth $192 million to purchase AIM-120 missiles. According to a press release from the Department of Defense, this contract provides for Raytheon to purchase fielded AIM-120 weapons from various sources.
Fiscal 2023 Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative funds in the amount of $7,688,220 are being obligated at the time of award, the release said.
The work, which is expected to be complete in Nov., 2024, will be performed in Tucson, where Raytheon builds the missiles.
The AIM-120 advanced medium-range air-to-air missile, better known as AMRAAM, is a new generation all-weather, missile manufactured by Raytheon. The AMRAAM is in service with the US Air Force (USAF), US Navy (USN), and over 25 US-allied nations.
The AMRAAM missile is a versatile and proven weapon with operational flexibility in a wide variety of scenarios, including air-to-air and surface-launch engagements. In the surface launch role, it is the baseline weapon on the NASAM launcher.
According to Raytheon, in the air-to-air role, no other missile compares to the AMRAAM missile. The weapon’s advanced active guidance section provides aircrew with a high degree of combat flexibility and lethality. Its mature seeker design allows it to quickly find targets in the most combat challenging environments.
