U.S. Army, UAE award $3.9 billion THAAD contract to Lockheed Martin
NewsSeptember 25, 2013
DALLAS. Lockheed Martin engineers will produce elements of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) Weapons System for the Missile Defense Agency and the United Arab Emirates under a $3.9 billion production contract.
The contract consists of the manufacture and delivery for a maximum of 110 interceptors for the U.S. Army, including the fiscal 2014 option. The Lot 4, 5, and 6 interceptors will then be fielded to the Army in Ft. Bliss, Texas. Interceptors and other ground hardware for the UAE also are included in the contract.
THAAD interceptors are produced by Lockheed Martin at the company’s Pike County facility in Troy, AL. The launchers and fire control units are built at the company’s Camden, Ark., facility. Lockheed Martin is currently under contract to produce five THAAD batteries for the Army. Deliveries on Batteries 3 and 4 are underway, with completion expected to be final at the end of this year. Battery 5 was awarded late last year.
Since 2005, the THAAD development program has performed 13 flight tests, with 11 successful intercepts in 11 attempts. THAAD can intercept in both the endo- and exo-atmospheres. A THAAD battery was delivered for the first time internationally by the Army to Guam earlier this year. THAAD is a Missile Defense Agency program, with its program office located in Huntsville, AL.
