Known as a legend in the field, the M270 Multiple Launch Rocket System (M270 MLRS) is a highly mobile, automatic system that fires surface-to-surface rockets and missiles from the MLRS® Family of Munitions (MFOM). Lockheed Martin is modernizing existing systems to protect soldiers with combat-proven reliability for decades to come. The company are upgrading launchers with new 600 HP engines, fire control system and an improved armored cab for customers, including the United Kingdom, Italy and United States to ensure capability and support through 2050.
Enhancements enable the MLRS to fire the newest next-generation munitions, like the Extended-Range GMLRS (ER GMLRS) and Precision Strike Missile (PrSM). Upgrades improve crew and system survivability, and offer interoperability with partner nations as well as the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) forces.
The M270 upgrade is only one example of how Lockheed Martin is working with customers to extend the lifecycle of assets and minimize the need for maintenance of core products commonly operated in remote locations with limited crews.
Here are three things to know about the critical capability M270 provides to partner nations:
The M270 launcher can fire 12 surface-to-surface GMLRS or Extended-Range GMLRS (ER GMLRS) rockets, 4 PrSM or 2 Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) faster and farther than any of its predecessors.
The launcher’s three-person crew can deliver large volumes of fire quickly and rapidly depart the firing area enhancing crew and platform survivability.
M270 is in service in more than 14 nations, including the United Kingdom, South Korea, Italy,Germany, France and the United States.
The M270 Multiple Launch Rocket System is an American-developed armored, self-propelled, multiple rocket launcher. The U.S. Army variant of the M270 vehicle is based on the chassis of the Bradley Fighting Vehicle. The first M270s were delivered in 1983. The M270 were subsequently adopted by several NATO countries and other countries. The M270 first saw service with the United States in the 1991 Gulf War. The M270 has been upgraded to fire guided missiles, and has been used by Ukraine in the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. Some 1,300 M270 systems have been manufactured in the United States and in Western Europe,[vague] along with more than 700,000 rockets.
