DoD contracts 790 JASSM-ER missiles for US and FMS customers

Lockheed Martin has been contracted to deliver 790 AGM-158 Joint Air-to-Surface Stand-off Missile (JASSM) systems to US Department of Defense (DoD) and Foreign Military Sales (FMS) customers.

The award, announced on 1 April, is valued at USD818.2 million and covers Lots 17 and 18 of production.

As noted in the announcement, the contract provides for 360 Lot 17 missiles for the US military, 40 Lot 17 missiles for undisclosed FMS customers, and 390 Lot 18 missiles for undisclosed customers.

Work will be performed in Orlando, Florida, and is expected to be completed by 31 October 2024. The award brings the total number of missiles to have been placed under contract to more than 3,000.

The JASSM is a stealthy next-generation stand-off weapon that features a low-wing design (swept back for carriage) with a rounded rectangular-shaped body and a single vertical tail (folded for carriage).

The missile’s mid-course guidance uses the inertial navigation system/GPS unit developed for the Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) and Joint Stand-Off Weapon (JSOW) guided bombs, with either a high-level or low-level (down to about 1,600 ft) cruise altitude. The terminal phase sees the JASSM fly a steep dive on to the target using an imaging infrared (IIR) seeker before the WDU-42/B (J-1000) penetration and blast fragmentation warhead detonates.

The range of the JASSM is listed as an estimated 370 km, while the JASSM-ER increases this to nearly 1,000 km through the addition of a new turbofan engine and additional fuel.