Raytheon Wins $149M to Develop SM-2 Block III

Raytheon has won $149 million for the engineering, manufacturing, and development of Standard Missile-2 Block IIIC.

The Standard Missile-2 or the SM-2 has two variants as of now- SM-2 Block IIIA and IIIB. The latest addition, SM-2 Block IIIC features an active radar seeker and is expected to be deployed by the U.S. Navy surface fleet by October 2022.

New missile system will incorporate the active homing seeker of the SM-6 ERAM into the existing SM-2 airframe resulting in a medium-range missile that can be fired against targets using tactical data supplied from off-board sensors fitted with the Navy’s new Cooperative Engagement Capability, whether fixed radars ashore or the E-2D Hawkeye airborne early warning aircraft embarked aboard US carriers.

According to the company, it is a fleet-area air defense weapon, providing superior anti-air warfare and limited anti-surface warfare capability against today’s advanced anti-ship missiles and aircraft out to 90 nautical miles and an altitude of 65,000 feet. The SM-2 missile has an area- and self-defense flight test history with more than 2,700 successful flight tests from domestic and international ships.

Work is expected to be completed by October 2022, US Department of Defense said in a statement Friday.