Latest news with #LTAMDS
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Pentagon ends new radar effort meant for Guam missile defense
Early this year, the Pentagon issued a memo halting development of a new radar meant to protect Guam from high-end air and missile threats, according to a May 22 Government Accountability Office report on the effort to protect the strategic island in the Pacific. 'On January 7, 2025, the Deputy Secretary of Defense [Kathleen Hicks] directed the [Missile Defense Agency] to cease development of one of the elements, the AN/TPY-6 radar, but to retain the currently fielded panel as an experimental asset with potential to develop for operational use within the [Guam Defense System] in the future,' the report states. While Hicks' decision came at the end of her tenure under the Biden administration, GAO notes the changes are not binding on the new administration. The Pentagon's plan to develop an elaborate air-and-missile defense architecture is beginning to take shape and will be pieced together over the coming years in order to protect Guam from increasingly complex threats emerging in China and North Korea. MDA had shipped its first AN/TPY-6 panel on a boat headed to the island last summer, planning to use it to track a threat launched from a C-17 plane in a first flight test of current capability coming together for the defense of Guam at the end of 2024. The new radar uses technology from MDA's Long-Range Discrimination Radar positioned in Alaska at Clear Space Force Base, which will have its own test next year ahead of declaring operational capability. The Guam Defense System will also rely on a variety of systems still in development, mostly within the Army. The Navy will provide technology and capability from its Aegis weapons system. The land service plans to bring to Guam currently fielded capabilities, like the Patriot system and its Integrated Battle Command System, or IBCS, that connects any sensor and shooter together on the battlefield, as well as Mid-Range Capability missile launchers, which were first fielded at the end of 2023. The Army will also incorporate Patriot's radar replacement, the Lower Tier Air and Missile Defense Sensor, or LTAMDS, which was just approved for production, and its Indirect Fire Protection Capability launchers, which are reaching the end of the prototyping phase. With the termination of AN/TPY-6, for now, Hicks directed the MDA prioritize remaining Aegis Guam systems development funds 'toward delivering minimum viable Aegis C2 [command and control] and datalink capabilities to enable Standard Missile 6 (SM-6) engagements off remote track from AN/TPY-2 and LTAMDS over the JTMC [Joint Track Management Capability] bridge,' according to GAO's report. The Pentagon's memo required upgrading the JTMC bridge to address all missile threats from China and achieve a Joint Tactical Integrated Fire Control capability — the future joint track architecture for Guam — 'for coordinated battle management, combat identification and electronic protection,' the report states. Those upgrades should be completed no later than 2029. The memo also directed MDA to accelerate key command-and-control integration work, including getting the Army-operated Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, or THAAD, system to work within IBCS. Guam is home to a permanent THAAD battery called Task Force Talon, which serves as the critical component for defending the island against ballistic missile threats. Additionally, the Army and MDA 'shall integrate AN/TPY-2 measurement data into IBCS no later than 2030 and achieve full integration by 2033,' the report details. The MDA has long used AN/TPY-2 radars to track ballistic missiles, but Raytheon just delivered a new version to MDA with Gallium Nitride, or GaN, which gives it the ability to track more complex threats at greater ranges like hypersonic weapons. The first new radar with GaN will go to the Army's eight THAAD battery. The radars can be used in a forward-based mode, providing cuing data to systems like the Navy's Aegis ballistic missile defense system or the Army's Patriot. It serves as the primary radar for THAAD. The Army's new LTAMDS radar, also developed by Raytheon, has GaN technology as well.
Yahoo
23-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
RTX Corp (RTX) Q1 2025 Earnings Call Highlights: Strong Growth Amidst Global Challenges
Organic Sales Growth: 8% increase. Segment Margin Expansion: 120 basis points improvement. Free Cash Flow: $900 million improvement versus prior year. Commercial Aftermarket Sales: Up 21%. Commercial OE Sales: Up 3%. Defense Sales: Up 4%. Adjusted Sales: $20.3 billion, up 5% overall and 8% organically. Segment Operating Profit: $2.5 billion, up 18%. Adjusted Earnings Per Share (EPS): $1.47, up 10% from prior year. GAAP EPS from Continuing Operations: $1.14. Free Cash Flow: $792 million in the quarter. Capital Returned to Shareowners: $890 million, primarily through dividends. Backlog: $217 billion, up 8% year-over-year. Collins Sales: $7.2 billion, up 8% adjusted and 9% organically. Pratt & Whitney Sales: $7.4 billion, up 14% adjusted and organic. Raytheon Sales: $6.3 billion, down 5% adjusted, up 2% organically. Raytheon Book-to-Bill Ratio: 0.70 for the quarter, 1.35 on a rolling 12-month basis. Warning! GuruFocus has detected 10 Warning Signs with RTX. Release Date: April 22, 2025 For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript. RTX Corp (NYSE:RTX) reported an 8% organic sales growth in the first quarter of 2025. The company achieved a 120 basis points expansion in segment margins, with strong contributions from all business segments. Commercial aftermarket sales increased by 21%, and defense sales grew by 4% year-over-year. RTX Corp (NYSE:RTX) generated strong free cash flow, improving by $900 million compared to the previous year. The company made significant progress in its innovation pipeline, including FAA certification for the GTF Advantage and advancements in the LTAMDS program. RTX Corp (NYSE:RTX) faces potential cost impacts of $850 million due to tariffs, which could affect profitability if they remain in place. The company has not included potential tariff impacts in its outlook for the year, indicating uncertainty in financial projections. There are concerns about supply chain disruptions due to tariffs, which could impact operational efficiency. The Raytheon segment experienced a 5% decline in adjusted sales due to the divestiture of the Cybersecurity business. The company is closely monitoring the dynamic global trade environment, which poses risks to its operations and financial performance. Q: Are you seeing the Rearm Europe effort as a big opportunity for Raytheon, and do you still expect the Raytheon business to have a book-to-bill above 1.0 this year? A: Yes, the EU's focus on ramping up defense spending presents a significant opportunity for Raytheon. Countries like Poland, the UK, and Germany are increasing their defense budgets, and the EU has announced $850 billion in additional defense spending over the next four to five years. Raytheon is well-positioned with its integrated air and missile defense systems, and we expect a book-to-bill of 1.0 or more this year. - Christopher Calio, President & CEO Q: Regarding the $850 million tariff impact, is that a gross or net number after mitigations? And what ability do you have to pass on costs to customers? A: The $850 million is inclusive of mitigations. We have regulatory, contractual, and operational mitigations in place. We've been operating in an inflationary environment and have experience in passing on costs through pricing. However, the situation is fluid, and we'll adjust our strategies as needed. - Christopher Calio, President & CEO Q: Could you discuss the potential changes in customer buying behavior and operational disruptions due to tariffs, particularly regarding China? A: We are closely monitoring the supply chain and customer behavior. The aerospace industry has been used to a duty-free environment, and we are working with our supply base to mitigate disruptions. China is an important market, and we are developing multiple global sources to ensure supply chain stability. - Christopher Calio, President & CEO Q: Can you provide an update on the NGAD program and its potential impact on RTX? A: We received a $550 million award in Q1 for NGAD, and we are pleased with the progress and feedback from testing. Pratt & Whitney has a strong record in fighter propulsion technologies, and we are optimistic about the program's future benefits. - Christopher Calio, President & CEO Q: How are you addressing the potential impact of the SPS fire on Collins or Pratt operations? A: We are working closely with SPS and other suppliers to mitigate the impact of the fire. We are optimistic about avoiding notable disruptions by leveraging alternate suppliers and maintaining strong supply chain relationships. - Christopher Calio, President & CEO For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript. This article first appeared on GuruFocus. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
21-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Next-gen air defense radar approved for low-rate production
The U.S. Army has formally approved a new air and missile defense sensor to replace its aging Patriot for low-rate production, according to its system developer Raytheon. The service has been working on replacing its aging Patriot air and missile defense system for over 15 years, initially running a competition for a full system before canceling those plans in favor of developing a new command-and-control system and a new radar separately. The Army's Lower-Tier Air and Missile Defense Sensor, or LTAMDS, 'is a huge, significant capability,' Maj. Gen. Frank Lozano, program executive officer for missiles and space, said in an exclusive interview with Defense News at Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, last month. 'We anecdotally say it doubles legacy Patriot radar capability and not only does it double it, it provides you 360-degree capability.' The radar is a major modernization element for the Army's Integrated Air and Missile Defense system, along with a fully modernized — and already fielded — command-and-control capability called the Integrated Battle Command system. The Army awarded Raytheon a contract in 2019 to deliver prototypes over five years. Building the radar rapidly was an ambitious challenge, according to Lozano, and the service decided to keep the sensor in testing for an extra year to ensure it was fully mature and ready for prime time. Now, following several successful flight tests, including ones that combined other major air and missile defense elements over last fall and early this year, the system has been deemed ready for low-rate initial production and the service is preparing to send two prototype systems used during testing to Guam as it builds up the island's air defense capability. 'I've been at Raytheon almost 40 years and worked a lot of large development programs and I have to say, I really don't know of one that's gone better,' Tom Laliberty, the company's president of land and air defense systems, told Defense News. 'To go from ... contract award, build six prototype units, test them over a few years and ... now ready to deploy them into theater is just unprecedented.' LTAMDS went through eight major missile flight tests along with roughly 10,000 hours of other testing, including radiate time, radar tracking time and testing against wind, rain, dust and road marches, during which soldiers 'kind of beat on them a little bit to see how they stand up,' Laliberty said. Additionally, LTAMDS is part of a larger air defense system, so the company and the Army worked to mature interfaces with the Northrop Grumman-made Integrated Battle Command System and integrate two different missiles: Patriot Advanced Capability 2 and PAC-3 Missile Segment Enhancement. 'That's really what that ... extra year was all about, the maturity of all that,' Laliberty noted. The Army's low-rate production lot will consist of roughly 10 radars. The service plans to build 94 radars total over the course of the program. Raytheon will also simultaneously build Poland's 12 LTAMDS radars on order. Poland is the first foreign customer for the system. Currently the time to build an LTAMDS is about 40 months on the production line, but the Army is working with Raytheon and has hired a consulting company to work on supply chain management in order to accelerate production time to 36 months (a formal program objective). 'From a cost perspective — [$13 billion across its life] — I think there's a huge win here,' Lozano said. 'It's a huge program, and it's likely going to be within the Army inventory for multiple decades. Because it's a digital radar that is software driven, it's going to mature and keep pace with the evolving threat.' 'We build the legacy Patriot radar for $110 to $115 million a copy,' he added. 'Right now, the initial cost of the LTAMDS radar is about $125 to $130 million a copy. That cost will continue to come down. We're building the newest, most advanced radar at almost the same exact price that we're building the legacy radar.' The Army's low-rate production period will last roughly two and a half years. The service is planning for the LTAMDS initial operational test and evaluation to take place in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2026. The service aims to reach full-rate production in 2028, Lozano said.
Yahoo
28-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Army to make new missile-defense radars after year of troubleshooting
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — The U.S. Army is just weeks away from making a production decision for its new missile defense radar, following an extra year of ironing out any kinks, according to Maj. Gen. Frank Lozano, the service's program executive officer for missiles & space. The Lower-Tier Air and Missile Defense Sensor, or LTAMDS, 'is a huge, significant capability,' Lozano said in an exclusive interview with Defense News at Redstone Arsenal, Alabama. 'We anecdotally say it doubles legacy Patriot radar capability and not only does it double it, it provides you 360-degree capability.' The radar is a major modernization element for the Army's Integrated Air and Missile Defense system along with a fully modernized command-and-control capability called the Integrated Battle Command System, which is already fielded. Building the radar rapidly – the Army awarded a contract to Raytheon in 2019 to deliver prototypes over five years – 'was always going to be incredibly technically challenging,' Lozano said. So, Lozano said he asked former Army acquisition chief Doug Bush for another year to mature the system. 'I said, 'Sir, we're really close, but we're just not there yet. I'm not exhibiting the level of performance that I would feel comfortable coming in for a Milestone C production decision,'' he said. Bush, who had the authority to grant such a request, did so, according to Lozano. The office continued to keep Army and Pentagon leadership apprised of the effort and now, following several successful flight tests, including one that combined other major air and missile defense elements over last fall and early this year, the system is deemed ready for low-rate initial production, Lozano said. While an Inspector General report recently criticized the program for lacking proper due diligence, Lozano disagreed with the characterization. 'We did provide the requisite oversight and so much so that we, as leaders, knew we needed a little bit more time for the system to mature. We got the time. We did the maturation.' The program office provided Army decision makers with a brief advocating to approve LTAMDS' for production at the end of February. 'It's our intent to have that signed in the next week or two,' he said. The Army's low-rate production lot will be roughly 10 radars. The service plans to build 94 radars total over the course of the program. Raytheon will also be building Poland's 10 LTAMDS radars on order simultaneously. Poland is the first foreign customer for the system. Currently the time to build an LTAMDS is about 40 months on the production line, Lozano said. But the Army is working with Raytheon and has hired the Boston Consulting Group to help work on supply chain management in order to make that 36 months, which is the formal program objective. 'From a cost perspective, I think there's a huge win here,' Lozano said. The program's estimated cost is now $13 billion across its life. 'It's a huge program, and it's likely going to be within the Army inventory for multiple decades. Because it's a digital radar that is software driven, it's going to mature and keep pace with the evolving threat,' he said. Lozano also noted that with the cost of microelectronics coming down and the efforts to miniaturize components, the level of efficiency will increase, capabilities will increase and costs will continue to come down for the system. 'We build the legacy Patriot radar for $110-$115 million a copy,' he noted. 'Right now the initial cost of the LTAMDS radar is about $125-$130 million a copy. That cost will continue to come down. We're building the newest, most advanced radar at almost the same exact price that we're building the legacy radar.' The Army low-rate production period will last roughly two-and-a-half years. The service is planning for the LTAMDS initial operational test and evaluation to take place in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2026. After that assessment, the service will send one of the sensors to Guam, which will join two other LTAMDS that are about to be delivered to the island in the coming months. The systems will be a part of a larger air and missile defense architecture there. The Army plans to reach full-rate production in 2028, Lozano said.
Yahoo
27-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
US Army ships its newest air-defense tech to units in Asia, Europe
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — The U.S. Army plans to send major elements of its most modernized air and missile defense capabilities to the Pacific and European theaters, according to Maj. Gen. Frank Lozano, program executive officer for missiles and space. For example, the service will send two of its Lower-Tier Air and Missile Defense Sensors, or LTAMDS, to Guam, Lozano told Defense News in an exclusive interview at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama. Additionally, the Army will send an Indirect Fire Protection Capability platoon with prototype launchers to South Korea and will also send some of its Integrated Battle Command System capability to Europe to modernize a Patriot air defense battalion there. Lozano had been tasked by Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George to examine the possibility of sending new air and missile defense capabilities still in the prototype phase to global hotspots. Both the Raytheon-developed LTAMDS and Leidos' Dynetics-made IFPC have seen successful test events over the past year, leading to George's push for testing advanced technology in real-life formations even before the development phase has formally concluded. LTAMDS is nearing a production decision and will then go into initial operational test and evaluation that will wrap up in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2026. Another LTAMDS radar will be sent to Guam in 2027, which will put three of the powerful, 360-degree radars on the island as part of complete air and missile defense architecture there. The Army is taking its two best performing prototypes, which are now being spruced up after developmental testing with Raytheon, and will begin preparing to ship the radars to Guam in May. They should arrive in June, Lozano said. The service developed LTAMDS to replace the current radar in Patriot air and missile defense systems, improving its detection and discrimination capability and giving it the ability to see threats from 360 degrees. The IFPC platoon will go to South Korea to help the Army work on concepts to create a composite air- and missile-defense battalion. This effort is being led by Brig. Gen. Pat Costello, commander of the 94th Army Air and Missile Defense Command in the Pacific theater. The IFPC system is designed to detect, track and defeat cruise missiles and drones as well as rockets, artillery and mortars at fixed and semi-fixed sites. It currently fires AIM-9X missiles but the Army is pursuing alternative interceptor options. The Army is also taking some of its pre-low-rate initial production IBCS capability, which is a new command-and-control system for the service's Patriot air and missile defense system, to modernize the 5-7 Patriot Air Defense Battalion in the 10th AAMDC in Europe. IBCS equipment is now on a ship and will arrive next month, Lozano said. While this is the first IBCS capability to be received by a unit outside of the United States, Poland was the first to get the system for its own Patriot forces in 2023.
