PATUXENT RIVER NAS, Maryland – US Navy land attack experts ask Raytheon Technologies Corp. to build 154 BGM-109 Tomahawk Block V missiles capable of attacking land and sea targets under a $217.1 million contract announced late last month.

Naval Air Systems Command officials at Patuxent River Naval Air Station, Md., are directing the Raytheon Missiles & Defense segment in Tucson, Ariz., to build 154 Tomahawk tactical missiles — 70 of which are for the Navy, 54 for the U.S. Navy Corps, and 30 for the US Army.

Tomahawk is a long-range, all-weather, jet-powered, subsonic surface-attack missile used primarily by the US Navy and UK Royal Navy in ship-based and airborne land attack operations. submarines.

For navigation and guidance, the missile uses a combination of inertial, GPS and terrain adaptation which uses an electro-optical sensor and radar altimeter for the terrain over which the missile passes to a terrain database internal.

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The Tomahawk Block V is the latest version and is an upgraded Tomahawk Block IV, which features a datalink that allows the missile to change targets in flight. It can wander for hours and change course instantly on command.

The Tomahawk Block V is a recertified and modernized missile with improved navigation and communications. The Block Va can hit moving targets at sea, while the Block Vb has a multi-effect warhead that can hit a variety of land targets. The most recent use of Tomahawk was in 2018, when US Navy surface warships and submarines launched 66 Tomahawk missiles at Syrian chemical weapons facilities.

Tomahawk Block V was introduced in 2021 with in-flight navigation and targeting improvements. Block Va, the Maritime Strike Tomahawk (MST), allows the missile to engage a moving target at sea, and Block Vb is fitted with the JMEWS (Joint Multiple Effects Warhead System) warhead for penetrating hard targets.

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Tomahawk Block V has longer range and dynamic targeting than its predecessors, and has unique flight, launch, and information processing capabilities. Raytheon can quickly integrate a new suite of sensors into the Tactical Tomahawk. The company provides a seeker, processor, software and a new inertial measurement unit for terminal maneuvers, as well as a redesigned power budget and system cooling.

Under this contract, Raytheon will perform the work in Tucson, Arizona; Pontiac, Michigan; Camden, Berryville, Ark. ; Huntsville and Anniston, Alabama; Clearwater, Florida; El Segundo, Ontario, Moorpark, Anaheim, Irvine, Pomona, South El Monte and Valencia, California; Spanish Fork and Salt Lake City, Utah; Glenrothes, Scotland; Middletown, Connecticut; Vergennes, Vergens; Midland, Ontario; Westminster, Colorado, and other locations in the United States, and is expected to be completed by January 2025.

For more information, contact Raytheon Missiles & Defense online at www.raytheonmissilesanddefense.com, or Naval Air Systems Command at www.navair.navy.mil.