Avio, Lockheed sign agreement for solid rocket motor production

The PrSM, pictured here, is a next-generation, long-range precision-strike missile in the US inventory. (U.S. Army/Darrell Ames)

WASHINGTON — The US arm of Italian rocket maker Avio will build and qualify solid rocket motors for Lockheed Martin’s Extended Range GMLRS and the Precision Strike Missile, paving the way for Avio to become a full-time supplier, the companies announced today.

The strategic cooperation agreement will provide Lockheed a second motor source for PrSM and an additional source of motors on the popular GLMRS round once those motors are fully qualified, Avio USA CEO Jim Syring told Breaking Defense in an interview.

“They’re essentially reserving capacity,” he said. “It’s a win for us and it’s a win for Lockheed.”

Tim Cahill, Lockheed’s president of its missiles and fire control, said in a news release that the agreement “enables us to speed up production of essential capabilities, ensuring our customers maintain their competitive edge against emerging threats.”

Solid rocket motors have historically been a chokepoint for the munitions industry after decades of consolidation left L3Harris and Northrop Grumman as the only two domestic providers. New entrants — such as Anduril, Ursa Major and X-Bow — have entered the market and are currently developing and testing motors, but the qualification process can take years.

Although Avio is a longtime producer of solid rocket motors in Europe, its US-based subsidiary is a relative newcomer. It broke ground on its first American manufacturing plant in September, with the 900,000-square-foot plant in Hurt, Va., scheduled to start building motors in 2029.

Avio’s status as a legacy solid rocket motor maker in Europe will give its American arm several advantages that new entrants lack, Syring said. Like its parent company, Avio USA will make certain components like cases and nozzles in house, meaning that it will not have to rely on an already stressed supply chain.

The company’s manufacturing experience also has benefits for training. One selling point for locating the production plant in southern Virginia was the access to trade workers like mechanics, electricians and welders, Syring said. However, all of those employees will need to undergo specialized training in order to take on the demanding job of making rocket motors.

“We’ll be able to take the people that have that technical discipline and experience and train them to be solid rocket motor manufacturing experts, and what we’ll do is we will take advantage of our parent company in Italy to send them over to Italy for three to four months to train in an actual factory,” he said.

Ahead of production, Avio has already begun putting raw materials like steel on order, with plans to purchase equipment with long lead times — like industrial-size mixers, ovens and x-ray machines — by the end of the year, Syring said.

Beyond its work on GMLRS and PrSM, Avio is also conducting engineering work for building the Mk104 solid rocket motor used for Raytheon’s Standard Missile family. The company is slated to complete its critical design review for that motor in spring 2027, Syring said.

图中所示的PrSM导弹是美国现役的下一代远程精确打击导弹。（美国陆军/达雷尔·艾姆斯摄）

华盛顿——意大利火箭制造商 Avio 的美国分公司将为洛克希德·马丁公司的远程 GMLRS 和精确打击导弹制造和认证固体火箭发动机，这将为 Avio 成为其全职供应商铺平道路，两家公司今天宣布了这一消息。

Avio USA 首席执行官 Jim Syring 在接受 Breaking Defense 采访时表示，这项战略合作协议将为洛克希德公司提供 PrSM 的第二个发动机来源，并在广受欢迎的 GLMRS 导弹发动机完全合格后，为其提供额外的发动机来源。

他说：“他们实际上是在预留产能。这对我们来说是好事，对洛克希德公司来说也是好事。”

洛克希德导弹与火控总裁蒂姆·卡希尔在一份新闻稿中表示，该协议“使我们能够加快关键能力的生产，确保我们的客户在面对新兴威胁时保持竞争优势”。

固体火箭发动机一直是军火行业的瓶颈，数十年的行业整合使得L3Harris和诺斯罗普·格鲁曼成为仅有的两家美国本土供应商。如今，Anduril、Ursa Major和X-Bow等新晋企业已经进入市场，目前正在研发和测试发动机，但认证过程可能需要数年时间。

尽管Avio是欧洲一家历史悠久的固体火箭发动机生产商，但其位于美国的子公司却是一家相对较新的企业。该公司于9月破土动工兴建其在美国的首家制造工厂，这座位于弗吉尼亚州赫特市、占地90万平方英尺的工厂计划于2029年开始生产发动机。

Syring表示，Avio作为欧洲老牌固体火箭发动机制造商的地位，将为其美国分公司带来新进入者所不具备的诸多优势。与母公司一样，Avio USA也将自主生产某些部件，例如外壳和喷嘴，这意味着它无需依赖本已不堪重负的供应链。

该公司丰富的制造经验也有利于员工培训。Syring表示，将生产厂设在弗吉尼亚州南部的一大优势在于当地拥有大量的技术工人，例如机械师、电工和焊工。然而，所有这些员工都需要接受专门培训，才能胜任制造火箭发动机这项高难度的工作。

他说：“我们将能够招收那些拥有相关技术知识和经验的人员，并将他们培训成固体火箭发动机制造专家。我们将利用我们在意大利的母公司，将他们送到意大利的实际工厂进行三到四个月的培训。”

Syring表示，在投产之前，Avio已经开始订购钢铁等原材料，并计划在年底前采购交货周期较长的设备，例如工业级搅拌机、烤箱和X光机。

除了参与GMLRS和PrSM项目外，Avio公司还在为雷神公司标准导弹系列所使用的Mk104固体火箭发动机进行工程设计。Syring表示，该公司计划于2027年春季完成该发动机的关键设计评审。