The U.S. Missile Defense Agency (MDA) awarded Lockheed Martin Rotary and Mission Systems $724 million Aegis Weapon System (AWS) contract. Under this follow on contract, the contractor will conduct full development and lifecycle engineering for the Aegis Weapon System (AWS) fielding for cruisers, destroyers and Aegis Ashore configurations. Work is estimated to be completed in February 2024. Work is estimated to be completed in February 2024. The contract calls for ship integration and test of the Aegis Weapon System for AWS Baselines through the system’s latest upgrade, known as Advanced Capability Build 16.
The Aegis Weapon System (AWS) contract will support the following efforts: Aegis Baseline (BL) 5.4.1 (Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) 4.2) development; BL 9 (BMD 5.X) development; Aegis BMD In-Service support; BMD ground and flight test support; modeling and simulation support; Aegis Ashore Missile Defense Test Complex combat system engineering, testing, site support, modernization, technical and logistics support; and Aegis BMD ship installation and planning. Lockheed will provide Aegis shipboard integration engineering, Aegis test team support, Aegis modernization team engineering support, Ballistic Missile Defense test team support, Aegis ashore support and AWS element assessments for a variety of vessels.
The Aegis Combat System is an advanced command and control and weapon control system using computers and radar to track and guide weapons to destroy enemy targets. Its Mark 41 Vertical Launch System is available in different versions, with missiles varying in size and weight, for self-defense, tactical and strike purposes. Advance Capacity Build refers to upgrades in the computers used to integrate the system’s AN/SPY-1 radar, MK 99 fire control system, weapons control, the command and decision suite, and SM-2 Standard missile group.