The US Air Force has awarded Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control a $53-million contract modification to increase production capacity for the Long-Range Anti-Ship Missile (LRASM), a key maritime strike weapon in the US arsenal. The latest modification raises the total value of the previously awarded contract to approximately $462.9 million and will support the procurement of additional tooling and testing equipment needed to expand missile production. Work related to the contract will be carried out at Lockheed Martin’s facility in Orlando, Florida, with completion expected by November 29, 2028. The new funding follows an earlier $130-million modification issued in August 2024 that also focused on acquiring manufacturing tools and testing infrastructure to support higher production rates of the missile system. LRASM is among several long-range precision weapons the US military is prioritizing as it seeks to strengthen its maritime strike capabilities against heavily defended naval targets. Lockheed Martin officials previously noted that the Department of Defense intends to significantly increase production of the missile. In 2023, Dominic DeScisciolo, LRASM business development lead at the company, stated that the US military plans to double the combined annual procurement of LRASM and the Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile from about 500 units to roughly 1,000 missiles. Designed for operations in contested maritime environments, LRASM is capable of engaging high-value targets such as aircraft carriers and guided-missile cruisers. The stealthy missile has an estimated operational range of around 200 nautical miles and travels at high subsonic speeds. It carries a 1,000-pound penetrator blast-fragmentation warhead capable of damaging heavily defended ships. The system combines GPS-assisted navigation with autonomous onboard sensors that enable it to adjust its flight path if threats are detected during the mission. LRASM is currently integrated on the US Air Force’s B-1B Lancer bomber and the US Navy’s F/A-18E/F Super Hornet fighter aircraft. Integration work is underway for the F-35 Lightning II fighter, while a surface-launched version compatible with naval vertical launch systems is also being developed.
