The race to build missiles at scale is on. Artisan manufacturing will not suffice – the Arsenal of Democracy needs scale and speed to supply. ⬇️
The War Zone has a good read on the US efforts to acquire flexible, relatively low cost missile options with companies such as L3 Harris, Lockheed Martin and challenger Anduril in the mix:
“This points to something of an industrial arms race to create modular, relatively cheap, and small systems that increasingly blur the line between uncrewed aerial systems, especially longer-range kamikaze drones, and cruise missiles, as well as decoys.”
Primes, Challengers and Start Ups alike are working on modular low cost missile designs that seek to improve the battlefield economics of strike and increase the utility of missiles across a range of missions and effectors. A point of difference in the approach some vendors are taking is that these missiles are built to scale from the start, not dependent on artisan assembly lines with woeful cycle times.
Unconventional effectors are also a point of focus – and not just uncrewed platforms. Aviation Week Network is reporting on the contest between challengers Anduril and Zone 5 to produce the US Air Force’s Family of Affordable Mass Missiles (FAMM). The US Air Force is also going large at the start – with an initial order of over 3,000 missiles in the first year. FAMM are planned to be palletised and launched from C-17s and C-130s:
“Two major advantages for palletized weapons are simplicity and cost. Because the FAMM weapons will not be exposed to the harsh vibration and thermal environment of exterior weapon bays, the designs can use lower-cost materials. The Air Force expects to pay an average of about $220,000 for each FAMM weapon, or roughly 10-17% the cost of other cruise missiles in the inventory.”
Interestingly the initial budget allocation for the US Air Force for FAMM is ~$1 billion. This program was only initiated in 2024 and is looking to deliver at scale in FY 2026. The current Australian Defence Force Guided Weapons and Explosive Ordinance plan is for $16 – 21 billion over a decade and could afford to accelerate delivery given the geopolitical circumstances.
Using a low cost missile and leveraging in service platforms for a new purpose sounds like the type of military Moneyball thinking we need more of. Consumables of combat, scale at speed, competition driving better outcomes for the warfighter – we need this in Australia.
📸 via L3 Harris and links to the TWZ and Aviation Week articles are in the comments.