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Jan. 30 (UPI) -- Raytheon Missile Systems has received a contract modification to supply Small Diameter Bombs for the U.S. Air Force. Under the contract, the company will provide low-rate initial production for 312 SDB II Lot 3 munitions for the branch. The order also includes 413 SBD Lot 3 single weapon containers, 20 weapon conversions for guided test vehicles, 20 production reliability incentive demonstration effort captive vehicles and training and maintenance services.
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Work on the contract will be performed at Raytheon's facility in Tucson, Ariz., and is expected to be complete by the end of June 2019.
The U.S. Department of Defense did not specify the value of Raytheon's contract modification, but did disclose the company received $62 million at the time of the modification award. The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center in Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is listed as the contracting activity.
Small Diameter Bombs are weapons designed to allow warfighters to engage their targets in the face of poor weather and other adverse conditions. The weapons come equipped with a seeker with three different modes, including a millimeter wave radar, an imaging infrared and a semi-active laser.
The SBD is able to fly more than 45 miles to hit moving targets, a characteristic Raytheon says improves warfighter safety.
The U.S. Air Force and the U.S. Navy have begun integrating the bombs on a variety of existing aircraft such as the F-15E Strike Eagle, the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, and the F-35 Lightning II.
