The US Army has awarded Raytheon Missiles & Defense a $182.3 million contract to produce National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS) for Ukraine.
The contract announcement said all of the mid-range air defense systems produced under the contract were destined for Ukraine and funded through fiscal 2022 Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI) funds.
Raytheon is expected to complete deliveries of the systems by August 2024.
Announcing the transfer of further NASAMS and other defense systems as part of the USAI program, US Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Colin Kahl said the capabilities in this package were not tailored to support Ukraine’s defense needs in the wake of the ongoing Russian invasion immediately, but were tailored to sustain Ukraine’s most critical capability needs in the medium to long term.
“Deliveries of this package will begin in the next several months and continue over the coming years. While many of these capabilities are not intended to directly contribute to today’s fight they will form the backbone of a robust, future Ukrainian force capable of defending Ukraine for years to come,” Kahl said.
“Raytheon Missiles & Defense and our partners are working diligently to quickly deliver this critical, proven air defense capability to help the Ukrainian people defend their homeland,” said Tom Laliberty, president of Land Warfare & Air Defense, a Raytheon Missiles & Defense business area. “Ukraine will join a dozen nations around the globe who rely on NASAMS to defeat a multitude of threats, including cruise missiles, aircraft, and unmanned systems.”
Jointly developed and produced by Raytheon and Norway’s Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace, NASAMS consists of the Sentinel radar, Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile, and KDA’s fire distribution center. Other missiles that can be launched from a NASAMS include the AIM-120 AMRAAM B/C5/C7, and the AIM 9-X Sidewinder Block II missile.
NASAMS provides air defenders with a tailorable, distributable defense system that allows them to identify, engage and destroy current and evolving enemy aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles and emerging cruise missile threats.
