Raytheon nabs $392.4M for tactical missiles

March 20 (UPI) -- The Navy awarded Raytheon a $392.4 million contract modification for production and delivery of tactical missiles for the Air Force, Navy and a variety of foreign governments, the Pentagon announced.

The deal modifies an earlier contract, awarded in September 2018, for repair of Air Intercept Missile (AIM)-9X Tactical and Captive Air Training Missiles (CATMs).

Under the modification, Raytheon will exercise options for production and delivery of Lot 20 AIM-9X, Block II and Block II Plus tactical missiles, as well as captive air training missiles and captive test missiles as well as associated equipment.

The AIM-9 Sidewinder was adopted by the U.S. Air Force in 1956 and the AIM-9X Sidewinder entered service in November 2003. The latter includes advanced infrared-tracking, short-range air-to-air and surface-to-air capabilities.

In May 2019 Raytheon won a $151.5 million contract to provide United States and 20 allies with integrated logistics support and repairs for sustainment of AIM-9X Sidewinder tactical short-range missiles.

The contract is funded with money from the Navy, the Air Force and the Pentagon's Foreign Military Sales program.

Missiles will be delivered to the Air Force, the Navy and 21 governments outside the United States, including Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, South Korea and Switzerland.

The bulk of work on the contract will be performed in Tucson, Ariz., with other parts fo the contract being executed in Andover, Mass., Keyser, W.V.; Hillsboro, Ore.; and various other locations within the United States and Canada.

The contract's expected completion date is July 2023.