This week, the U.S. company Raytheon announced it has received a new contract from the U.S. Army to continue manufacturing TOW anti-tank missiles. This significant contract totals $676 million, split between a $430 million annual award in 2023 and an additional $246 million extension signed this year.
In this regard, Tom Laliberty, President of Raytheon’s Air and Land Defense Systems, stated: “Our TOW production line is active (Editor’s note: in the state of Arizona) and can manufacture up to 10,000 missiles per year. (…) This combat-proven effector is ready to meet current and future anti-tank guided missile requirements for the U.S. Army, Marine Corps, and ground forces around the world.”
It is worth noting that the company has delivered over 700,000 missiles to both the U.S. Armed Forces and various allied armies, including a significant batch of 13,000 units delivered to Ukraine. In its current configuration, the missile stands out for its deployment capability across a wide range of ground platforms, providing anti-tank capabilities to Stryker APCs, light HMMWV vehicles, and Bradley armored vehicles, among others. According to the manufacturer, it has been used in combat over 11,000 times.
Finally, it is useful to mention the new development Raytheon is undertaking with the TOW missile, which would be the subject of new production batches—the TOW-2B version. Specifically, this version features a modernized fuse and an advanced target detection system, demonstrating a considerable enhancement in system capabilities in recent acceptance tests. Together, these new technologies enable the TOW-2B to approach and strike the upper side of enemy armored vehicles, typically the weakest point in their armor, making it ideal for use in urban environments.
Images used for illustrative purposes.
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