The Norwegian government has today announced plans to order critical parts for the production of NASAMS (Norwegian Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System, also known as the National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System), aimed at improving the delivery times for launcher units upon the signing of new contracts. The government has proposed an allocation of approximately NOK 941 million to Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace (KONGSBERG), as part of a new investment proposition for the Norwegian Armed Forces, which is being submitted to the Norwegian Parliament for political consideration. NASAMS is currently used in 13 countries and is provided by KONGSBERG in collaboration with American Raytheon.
“KONGSBERG has already committed nearly three billion NOK to increase our own production capabilities in air defence and missile systems. We welcome the Government’s initiative to introduce new investment plans,” said Geir Håøy, CEO of KONGSBERG.
“This government initiative will allow us to expedite NASAMS deliveries once new contracts are finalized. It offers us the chance to secure critical components with lengthy delivery schedules sooner than was previously possible,” remarked Eirik Lie, CEO of Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace.
“We must enhance Norway’s air defence capabilities to more effectively protect both civilian and military objectives from air attacks. The present security climate necessitates the expedited procurement of advanced air defence systems. The conflict in Ukraine has underscored the vital importance of air defence in wartime,” said Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre.
“We’ve seen an increase in delivery times. To address this, we aim to order critical parts now to speed up future procurements of NASAMS. Extended delivery periods are a widespread issue in the defence industry, and this initiative is expected to decrease production times,” stated Defence Minister Bjørn Arild Gram.
NASAMS is a distributed and networked short to medium-range?4? ground-based air defense system developed by Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace (KDA) and Raytheon. The system defends against unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), helicopters, cruise missiles, unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAVs), and fixed wing aircraft,? firing any of a wide range of existing missiles. NASAMS was the first application of a surface-launched AIM-120 AMRAAM (Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile). NASAMS 2 is an upgraded version of the system capable of using Link 16, which has been operational since 2007. As of 2022, NASAMS 3 is the latest upgrade. Deployed in 2019, it adds capability to fire AIM-9X Sidewinder, and AMRAAM-ER missiles, and introduces mobile air-liftable launchers.
