Triple play
Raytheon Technologies' suite of advanced naval systems helps to defend fleets
One missile skims the waves to avoid being seen. Another can loiter for hours, shift course on command and strike a moving target with pinpoint accuracy. A third can strike targets in the air and on the sea, including ballistic missiles.
This trio of advanced weapons — Raytheon Technologies' Naval Strike Missile, Tomahawk cruise missile and SM-6® missile — protect U.S. Navy sailors and defend the fleet.
Naval Strike Missile
NSM is a long-range precision missile that strikes heavily defended land and sea targets. The missile, with a range of up to 100 nautical miles, flies at low altitudes and uses advanced seeker and target-identification tech.
In 2018, the Navy selected the Naval Strike Missile for its over-the-horizon defense of littoral combat ships and future frigates. Raytheon Technologies has teamed with Norway’s Kongsberg to bring the fifth-generation missile stateside.
“As we take these initial steps for domestic production, it’s clear the important role this missile will play for the U.S. Navy,” said Randy Kempton, a program director for Raytheon, a business of Raytheon Technologies.
The company is building the Naval Strike Missile’s U.S. supply chain, which will provide parts and create jobs for more than two dozen suppliers. Early stages of production are already underway, with missile launchers set to be produced in Louisville, Kentucky.
In 2019, the U.S. Marine Corps adopted the NSM, which helps to share costs and enhances interoperability with the Navy.
Independence-variant littoral combat ship USS Gabrielle Giffords (LCS 10) launches a Naval Strike Missile during exercise Pacific Griffin. Raytheon Technologies and Kongsberg put the missile on the ship one year ahead of its initial deployment schedule. (Photo: U.S. Navy)
Tomahawk cruise missile
The Tomahawk cruise missile can fly more than 1,000 miles, circle on command, transmit photos of a target to commanders and see through obscurants to hit a moving target at sea. Raytheon Technologies and the Navy are working together to enhance Tomahawk.
Beginning in 2020, the Navy will recertify and modernize the missile, extending its service life by 15 years. Some Tomahawks in the new Block V series will be upgraded with a maritime strike capability and others, a joint, multiple-effects warhead. The company will also add navigation and communication upgrades to all Block V variants.
SM-6 missile
The SM-6 missile also continues to support the Navy’s pursuit of sea control. Anti-air warfare, the missile’s original mission, enables the SM-6 to defend ships against enemy aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles and cruise missiles.
In 2015, the missile demonstrated it could protect ships against ballistic missiles in their final phase of flight, furthering the layers of defense. In 2016, SM-6 engaged its first surface target, making it the only missile to perform all three missions.
Raytheon Technologies has delivered more than 500 SM-6 missiles to the Navy, and the company continues to rapidly improve the multi-mission missile.
