Pentagon’s No.1 weapons supplier Lockheed Martin Corp. has been awarded a modification to contract for procurement of combat-proven Hellfire air-to-ground missiles.
The contract modification, announced Wednesday by the Department of Defense, is worth more than $702,9 million.
Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Sept. 30, 2023.
The company’s website said the Hellfire is the world’s best air-to-ground weapon system.
Hellfire family includes three warhead variations to defeat a broad target set – the high-explosive anti-tank (HEAT) missile, or AGM-114K, which defeats all known and projected armored threats; the AGM-114M blast fragmentation missile, which defeats “soft” targets such as boats, buildings, bunkers and light-armored vehicles; and the metal augmented charge (MAC) missile, or AGM-114N, which defeats enclosures, caves and enemy personnel housed therein – all with minimal collateral damage.
Hellfire air-to-ground missile has been launched from a wide array of platforms, including the U.S. Army’s Apache (AH-64A and AH-64D), the U.S. Marine Corps’ Cobra (AH- 1W and AH-1Z), and the UK’s Apache (AH MK1) attack helicopters; the U.S. Navy’s Seahawk armed reconnaissance helicopter (SH-70B); the U.S. Army’s Kiowa Warrior scout helicopter (OH-58D); and the U.S. Air Force’s Predator unmanned aerial vehicle.