Angeline Leishman
Northrop Grumman has received a U.S. Navy contract for the low-rate initial production of guided air-launched missiles with extended range and anti-radiation capabilities meant to upgrade the strike distance of existing naval aircraft projectiles.
The Navy plans to integrate the upcoming AGM-88G Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile Extended Range weapons on its F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, EA-18HG Growler and F-35C Lightning II aircraft, the company said Thursday.
According to Northrop, the milestone was achieved 23 months after an engineering and manufacturing development contract was awarded in 2019. The company cited the help from its naval and industry partners in designing the missile.
Northrop achieved a Milestone C approval for the missile on Aug. 23.
AARGM-ER, an extended range variant of the existing AARGM, is scheduled to go through captive and live-fire flight testing through 2022 before entering initial operational capability in 2023.
