Raytheon gets $1.7bn US Army contract to start building next-gen LTAMDS radar system
September 1, 2025
Raytheon, a business of RTX, has been awarded a $1.7 billion contract modification by the US Army to begin low-rate initial production of its cutting-edge Lower Tier Air and Missile Defence Sensor (LTAMDS), a powerful radar system designed to detect and counter advanced airborne threats, including hypersonic weapons.
The contract modification, announced by the US Department of Defence, brings the total cumulative value of Raytheon’s LTAMDS contract to nearly $3.8 billion.
Work on the programme will be carried out at the company’s facility in Andover, Massachusetts, with completion expected by 28 December 2029.
Funding for the latest award includes $397 million from fiscal year 2025 Foreign Military Sales (FMS) earmarked for Poland, as well as $435 million in missile procurement funds from the US Army.
The Army Contracting Command at Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, is managing the agreement.
Raytheon LTAMDS radar: A new chapter in air and missile defence
LTAMDS is a next-generation radar system designed to provide 360-degree surveillance and fire control. It will replace the decades-old radar currently used in the Patriot air and missile defence system, maintaining compatibility with existing launchers and interceptors while significantly enhancing performance.
The system features a trio of active electronically scanned array antennas, comprising one large primary array and two smaller secondary arrays, which work in unison to detect, track, and engage multiple simultaneous threats from any direction.
Despite being similar in size to the current Patriot radar, the LTAMDS primary array delivers more than twice the power.
Crucially, the system is designed to defeat evolving threats such as manoeuvrable cruise missiles, unmanned aerial systems, and hypersonic weapons, which travel at speeds exceeding a mile per second and are notoriously difficult to intercept.
Fast-track to production after key milestone
Raytheon’s transition from prototype to production has moved at a pace rarely seen in major defence programmes.
The radar completed a rigorous series of eight increasingly complex flight tests, earning the Pentagon’s Milestone C designation, a critical marker that clears the path for full-scale production.
“This is an unprecedented achievement, with a development programme of this magnitude transitioning from prototype to production and deployment at an accelerated pace,” said Tom Laliberty, president of Land and Air Defence Systems at Raytheon.
“Our collaborative partnership with the US Army and industry has delivered advanced 360-degree integrated air and missile defence capability in record time.”
The US Army leveraged special Middle-Tier Acquisition authority granted by Congress to expedite LTAMDS development and fielding, a process that would typically span over a decade.
Poland becomes the first international customer
Raytheon has already delivered the first six LTAMDS units to the US Army under a contract signed in 2019.
The company is currently producing eight units per year and plans to scale up to 12 annually to meet rising global demand.
Poland has become the first foreign military customer to procure LTAMDS, incorporating the system into its national air defence network.
According to Raytheon, at least a dozen other nations are in discussions and have requested pricing and availability information.
As threats continue to evolve, LTAMDS represents a significant leap forward in integrated air and missile defence for both the US and its allies.
