Navy, Raytheon ink $24.4B deal for SM-6 ‘acceleration’

USS Savannah (LCS 28) conducts a live-fire demonstration in the Eastern Pacific Ocean utilizing a containerized launching system that fired an SM-6 missile from the ship at a designated target. (US Navy)

WASHINGTON — The US Navy and RTX subsidiary Raytheon have inked a $24.4 billion deal designed to “accelerate” production of the Standard Missile-6 (SM-6), the Pentagon announced.

“This five-year agreement, with two additional option years, will drive faster production, increase manufacturing throughput, and deliver significant cost savings across the defense industrial base,” the Pentagon wrote in the announcement Thursday evening.

The Pentagon did not disclose how many missiles the deal covers, nor did a subsequent company announcement.

The announcement comes as the department has been looking for ways to bolster critical munition production lines and refill its stockpiles, including for the SM-6 — a Navy missile used to strike an array of targets including aircraft, ballistic missiles and maritime vessels. In February, the Pentagon and Raytheon signed a framework agreement designed to pave a path ahead for a multi-year deal and production increase.

“This agreement, coupled with the recent Tomahawk weapon system award, provides the defense industry with the long-term predictability needed to expand workforce capacity and secure critical supply chains,” the department wrote.

In mid-August, the Navy awarded Raytheon a $22.9 billion contract to ramp up production of the Tomahawk cruise missile to 1,000 rounds a year, and earlier this week the Pentagon and Raytheon inked a deal worth up to nearly $20.7 billion for production of the Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM).

美国海军“萨凡纳”号濒海战斗舰（LCS 28）在东太平洋进行实弹射击演示，使用集装箱式发射系统从舰上向指定目标发射了一枚SM-6导弹。（美国海军）

华盛顿——五角大楼宣布，美国海军和RTX子公司雷神公司签署了一项价值244亿美元的协议，旨在“加速”标准导弹-6（SM-6）的生产。

五角大楼在周四晚间的公告中写道：“这项为期五年、另有两年续约选择权的协议，将加快生产速度，提高制造效率，并为整个国防工业基地节省大量成本。”

五角大楼没有透露这笔交易涉及多少枚导弹，随后该公司发布的声明也没有说明。

此次宣布正值国防部寻求加强关键弹药生产线并补充库存之际，其中包括SM-6导弹——一种用于打击包括飞机、弹道导弹和海上舰艇在内的多种目标的美国海军导弹。今年2月，五角大楼和雷神公司签署了一项框架协议，旨在为未来达成一项多年期协议和提高产量铺平道路。

“这项协议，加上最近授予的战斧武器系统，为国防工业提供了扩大劳动力规模和保障关键供应链所需的长期可预测性，”国防部写道。

8 月中旬，海军授予雷神公司一份价值 229 亿美元的合同，将战斧巡航导弹的年产量提高到 1000 枚；本周早些时候，五角大楼和雷神公司签署了一项价值高达近 207 亿美元的协议，用于生产先进中程空对空导弹 (AMRAAM)。