Air Force asks Raytheon to make upgrades to latest production lots of AMRAAM missiles

EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Fla., 20 Nov. 2015. Missile designers at the Raytheon Co. will provide special tooling and test equipment, as well as technology refresh and upgrades of the latest batch of the AIM-120 Advanced Medium Range Air to Air Missile (AMRAAM) for the U.S. Air Force, Navy, and foreign militaries.

Officials of the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., announced a $25.7 million contract modification this week to the Raytheon Missile Systems segment in Tucson, Ariz., to provide special tooling and special test equipment for the form, fit, function, refresh (F3R) transition to full-rate production, testing of F3R test software, fixtures, and equipment modifications for AMRAAM missiles production lots 28 to 30.

The contract modification is related to a $491.5 million contract awarded to Raytheon last December for lot 28 AMRAAM production. Lot 28 involves federal fiscal year 2014 AMRAAM procurement, in which Pentagon officials plan to buy 227 AMRAAM missiles -- 183 AIM-120D missiles for the Air Force and 44 for the Navy, and the rest for foreign military sales.

Lot 28 AMRAAM production is to include product improvements such as fuzing, guidance, and kinematics. AMRAAM has scored combat victories in the skies of Iraq, Bosnia, and Kosovo, Raytheon says. It uses digital technology, micro-miniaturized solid-state electronics, and active radar guidance for air combat and air defense. NATO combat pilots use the radio code "Fox Three" when launching an AMRAAM.

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AMRAAM provides multi-shot capability, and can be launched day or night, in all weather conditions. Its autonomous guidance capability provides the pilot with launch-and-leave ability to provide fast engagement of follow-on targets or the option to fire first and then run from targets.

AMRAAM's capabilities include quick fly-out, immunity to countermeasures, and the ability to reject radar clutter to attack low-altitude targets. The missile has active radar guidance, multi-shot capability, and the ability to launch from aircraft or from surface-to-air missile sites.

On this contract modification Raytheon will do the work in Tucson, Ariz., and should be finished by November 2018. For more information contact Raytheon Missile Systems online at www.raytheon.com, or the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center at www.wpafb.af.mil.