Orbital ATK, a global leader in aerospace and defense technologies, announced today that it has been awarded a $119 million contract by the U.S. Navy for the fourth full-rate production lot of the Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile (AARGM) and a fifth lot for up to $141 million. The contract covers All-Up Round missiles and captive air training missiles for the U.S. Navy and Italian Air Force as well as the second Foreign Military Sales order for the Royal Australian Air Force. The contract award reinforces the customers need for AARGM’s critical mission capabilities.
“With the rapid proliferation of threats emerging around the world, AARGM provides significant advanced capabilities to those protecting our nation each and every day,” said Bill Kasting, Vice President and General Manager of Orbital ATK’s Defense Electronic Systems division of the Defense Systems Group. “AARGM continues to provide the U.S. Navy and our allies with the most advanced system against surface-to-air threats.”
AARGM is a supersonic, air-launched tactical missile system, upgrading legacy AGM-88 HARM systems with advanced capability to perform destruction of enemy air defense missions. AARGM provides the most advanced system for pilots, with in-cockpit, real-time electronic order of battle situational awareness against today’s modern surface-to-air threats. It is able to rapidly engage traditional and non-traditional advanced land- and sea-based air-defense threats, as well as striking, time-sensitive targets.
AARGM is a U.S. Navy and Italian Air Force international cooperative major acquisition program with the U.S. Navy as the executive agent. AARGM is currently deployed and supporting operational requirements for the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps. The missile is integrated into the weapons systems on the FA-18C/D Hornet, FA-18E/F.
Super Hornet and EA-18G Growler aircraft. AARGM is anticipated to achieve Initial Operational Capability on the Italian Air Force’s Tornado ECR aircraft in 2017.
With additional integration efforts, AARGM could be employed on the F-35.
Orbital ATK’s Defense Systems Group is an industry leader in providing innovative and affordable precision and strike weapons, advanced propulsion and hypersonics, missile components across air-, sea- and land-based systems, ammunition and related energetic products.
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