Marines contract for Javelin upgrades

TUCSON, Dec. 19 (UPI) -- The U.S. Marine Corps has contracted the Raytheon-Lockheed Martin joint venture for upgrades to portable medium-range missile technology.

The partnership of U.S. companies Raytheon and Lockheed Martin, called the Javelin Joint Venture, was awarded a contract to upgrade 404 Block 0 command missile launch units to the more advanced Block I.

The $29.9 million upgrade contract for the Javelin Joint Venture is an effort by the Marine Corps to counter the threat posed by militants in Iraq and Afghanistan who are equipped with long-range machine guns. Officials say the Block I upgrade offers U.S. troops an extended detection, recognition and identification of enemy threats for the Javelin missile.

"This retrofit is a great opportunity to provide command launch unit Block I technology to the U.S. Marine Corps," Hady Mourad, Lockheed Martin Javelin program director, said in a statement.

"Our employees are dedicated to providing the best available technology to the great defenders of our nation. Remanufacturing fielded hardware to increase the war fighter's capabilities in the field is only one way we make this happen."