Lockheed Martin bags $3.2 billion US Air Force contract for JASSM and LRASM
A B-1B Lancer carrying an AGM-158 Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile. (Photo: US Air Force / Wikimedia Commons)
Lockheed Martin will supply the missile systems to the militaries of Japan, Finland, Poland and the Netherlands, with work carried out at Lockheed Martin’s facilities in Orlando until mid-2032.
The US Air Force had awarded Lockheed Martin with a US$3.2 billion sole-source contract to produce joint air-to-surface standoff missiles (JASSM) and long-range anti-ship missiles (LRASM).
The contract focused on Lot 22 JASSM and LRASM and Foreign Military Sales (FMS) missiles for Japan, the Netherlands, Finland and Poland. As reported by Reuters, in May 2024, Poland signed a reported $735 million contact with the US for the supply of JASSM-ER (extended-range) missiles.
JASSMs – one of Lockheed’s first cruise missiles – are conventional, air-launched missiles, designed for the US Air Force and international allies, while LRASMs are precision-guided, long-range anti-ship missiles, designed to meet the demands of the US Air Force and Navy.
On 16 September 2024, Lockheed Martin unveiled its AGM-158 XR cruise missile concept, which it claimed would offer increased standoff attack range. The XR missile would also be compatible with the same platforms that deploy the JASSM and LRASM, including the F-35 Lightning II combat aircraft.
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