Australia Becomes Second Global Producer of GMLRS Rockets for HIMARS Systems

Australia has become the world’s second producer of precision-guided GMLRS rockets for the M142 HIMARS rocket system, after the United States.

The Australian Department of Defence announced this.

Production has started at a new facility in Port Wakefield, South Australia. The first batch of rockets is expected to roll off the production line by mid-March.

Lockheed Martin Australia opened the facility in cooperation with the Australian Department of Defence in early December 2025.

It is the first production facility outside the United States to manufacture GMLRS rockets.

In Australia, it is expected that the facility will ensure domestic rocket production even during an international conflict, when global supply chains may be disrupted.

GMLRS Rocket Production

The plant is expected to reach its long-term production target of 4,000 rockets per year by 2029.

Currently, rocket components are supplied from the United States, but plans include producing all components locally by the Australian industry. In the future, the facility is also expected to manufacture the latest U.S. ballistic missiles, the Precision Strike Missile (PrSM), which can also be launched from HIMARS systems.

To implement the project, a group of Australian engineers underwent specialized training for a year at Lockheed Martin facilities in the United States.

Thanks to the knowledge they gained, the engineers, together with their American and Australian colleagues, prepared the facility to assemble the first batches of GMLRS rockets.

This became possible under a $37.4 million contract that provides for the transfer of key U.S. technologies required for production.

Lockheed Martin Australia and Thales Australia have also agreed to develop solid-fuel rocket motors for GMLRS rockets.