TUCSON, AZ -- The Missile Defense Agency awarded Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTN) $350 million to increase its procurement of Standard Missile-3 Block IB missiles from 8 to 44.
The SM-3 is designed to destroy incoming short-, medium-, and intermediate-range ballistic missile threats by colliding with them in space, a concept sometimes described as "hitting a bullet with a bullet."
The work will be performed in Tucson, Ariz., and Huntsville, Ala., through September 2016.
Standard Missile-3 2013 Year-in-Review
• February: SM-3 Block IA destroys medium-range ballistic missile target using remote satellite cue
• March: Raytheon's dual-band datalink tested with Thales radar
• May: SM-3 Block IB destroys complex, separating short-range ballistic missile target
• June: Raytheon delivers first SM-3 from its new Alabama missile integration facility
• September: SM-3 Block IA destroys medium-range ballistic missile target during operational test
• September: US Navy launches two SM-3 Block IBs against single ballistic missile target; target destroyed
• October: SM-3 Block IB destroys medium range ballistic missile target; completes initial operational testing
• October: SM-3 Block IIA completes critical design review; program moves from design to build
For more about Raytheon, visit http://www.raytheon.com