United States Plans to Sharply Increase Production of PAC-3 MSE Anti-Aircraft Missiles

The US government is asking Lockheed Martin to plan an increase in the production of PAC-3 MSE anti-aircraft missiles for Patriot air defense systems.

This is reported by Aviation Week.

According to Brian Kubik, the company’s vice president of the PAC-3 program, under the current contract, the company is obliged to produce 650 interceptors per year until 2027. And, judging by the production rate over the past three months, it has already achieved this goal.

The company expects that the requirements will exceed the 650-unit mark, as it has been asked to assess the possibility of producing up to 2,000 units per year. The company’s current plans call for the production of 750 PAC-3 MSE anti-aircraft missiles by 2027.

Lockheed Martin is also considering increasing the production rate of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile system, which is currently 96 interceptors per year.

According to Kubik, the main problem that held back production was the shortage of rocket engines. However, thanks to the increase in production by L3Harris Technologies and Northrop Grumman Corporation, this problem has been solved. In addition, Lockheed Martin is also looking for alternative suppliers.

Currently, the PAC-3 Missile Segment Enhanced missile is in production, but the company continues to develop the next version, the Integrated Guidance Subsystem (IGS). The new version, thanks to the miniaturization of electronics, will be able to accommodate more fuel, which in turn will increase the range of the missile. Production of the IGS will begin “in a couple of years,” Kubik says.