Navy Awards Raytheon $22.9 Billion Contract for Tomahawk Missiles
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The Story
On Monday, August 17, the U.S. Navy awarded a $22.9 billion contract to Raytheon to accelerate production of Tomahawk missiles. The contract, awarded to RTX subsidiary Raytheon, aims to ramp up annual production of the Tomahawk cruise missile to 1,000 rounds a year, an increase from the current 60 per year. Acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao announced the deal, stating it reinforces the Department’s commitment to rebuilding the defense industrial base. Raytheon President Phil Jasper said the company is making investments in our workforce, technology, supply chain and facilities to dramatically boost production capacity. Michael Duffey, the Pentagon’s top acquisition official, stated the award increases our ability to equip the Joint Force. This formal announcement firms up a framework agreement signed between the U.S. military and Raytheon in February. The production increase will occur over a multiyear period, and the contract itself will run for seven years. The U.S. military has been scrambling to rebuild depleted stocks of high-tech weaponry. The contract comes amid a munitions shortage in the months after the start of the Iran war. The U.S. has supplied large amounts of arms to allies and used munitions in the Iran conflict, raising concerns about inventories of air defense and precision-guided weapons. The sea-launched Tomahawk is a mainstay of the Navy’s surface fleet, providing long-range precision strike capability against land targets from ships and submarines. The administration of President Donald Trump is brokering multi-year deals with the biggest U.S. defense contractors to incentivize investments in new facilities and equipment.
The Spread
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What they agree on
- The U.S. Navy awarded a $22.9 billion contract to Raytheon on Monday, August 17, 2026.
- The contract is for accelerating the production of Tomahawk missiles.
- The goal is to increase annual Tomahawk production to 1,000 rounds a year from the current 60 per year.
- The contract will run for seven years and follows a framework agreement signed in February.
- The increased production aims to address munitions shortages and rebuild the defense industrial base.
Where they split
- The Hill and Defense News explicitly link the contract to a munitions shortage "in the months after the start of the Iran war" and the U.S. supplying arms to allies.
- Breaking Defense provides a statement from Raytheon President Phil Jasper about investments in workforce, technology, supply chain, and facilities, and mentions other missile production agreements.
- Defense News specifies that the administration of President Donald Trump is brokering multi-year deals with defense contractors to encourage investment.
- Euractiv reports the commitment as €20 billion, while all other sources state $22.9 billion.
Source Perspectives
Center6 sources