The U.S. Navy is rapidly accelerating Tomahawk cruise missile production to meet urgent inventory demands, leveraging a legacy 2019 SLAM-ER contract to fast-track new warhead casings by 2027.
Tomahawk production is slated to receive a major boost with a new production modification tacked onto an existing 2019 contract for SLAM-ER cruise missiles. The move, detailed in a Sept. 2 contract notice, cites immediate demand for increased production as the primary reason for the acceleration.
“The tasking in the proposed modification provides for [General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems] to manufacture and deliver [redacted] warhead housings, within nine months, to be used in the production of missile warhead sections for the U/RGM-109E TACTOM,” the document reads. “This accelerated delivery schedule is due to immediate demand for increased missile production for the United States Navy, as a result of current international conflict.”
General Dynamics builds warhead casings for both SLAM-ER and Tactical Tomahawks for the U.S. Navy.
The U.S. Navy has fired hundreds of Tomahawk cruise missiles at targets in Iran since the start of Operation Epic Fury. Concerns over remaining stockpiles have dominated conversations around the United States’ ability to sustain a wider conflict if one were to occur, most notably in the Indo-Pacific. The Pentagon has already signed frameworks with major defense companies—some contingent on congressional funding—to accelerate the production of other key expended munitions, including the Navy’s SM-3 anti-ballistic missile and the Army’s PAC-3 MSE interceptor.
The move to fold Tomahawk warhead production into SLAM-ER production is another case of accelerated manufacturing supporting inventory replenishment across major U.S. military weapon systems. The newly delivered warheads will be installed on both newly built and recertified Block IV/V Tomahawk missiles.
“In order to meet the required delivery date of the first assets, the Government needs [first article inspections] to begin no later than [the] 1st Quarter of calendar year 2027,” the contract adds. “GD-OTS has the requisite knowledge, expertise and technical experience to meet this urgent missile delivery schedule.”
Tacking Tomahawk casing production onto the existing SLAM-ER contract avoids the long lead times required to award a new contract or qualify a secondary warhead source, granting the U.S. Navy and prime contractor Raytheon faster access to critical subcomponents.
Naval News reached out to the U.S. Navy and General Dynamics for comment, but neither responded prior to publication.
