WASHINGTON, D.C. - Boeing has entered a strategic partnership with Anduril Industries to compete in the U.S. Army’s Integrated Fires Protection Capability (IFPC) Increment 2 Second Interceptor program. Under the agreement, Anduril Rocket Motor Systems will supply the solid rocket motors for Boeing’s mid-range interceptor proposal.

The collaboration follows the U.S. Army’s Dec. 5 award of an Other Transaction Authority (OTA) project agreement to Boeing. The initiative is part of a broader effort to defend fixed and semi-fixed sites against low-flying aerial threats, specifically subsonic and supersonic cruise missiles and militarized drones. The Boeing-Anduril proposal is intended to bridge the gap between existing short-range and long-range air defense systems with a more cost-effective solution.

The Competitive Landscape

The Army's search for a "Second Interceptor" has drawn interest from several major defense contractors. These candidates must be compatible with the Enduring Shield launcher, currently manufactured by Leidos subsidiary Dynetics.

* Lockheed Martin: The aerospace giant secured its own OTA agreement in October 2025. Lockheed is reportedly developing a compact, high-speed interceptor in collaboration with AeroVironment, focusing on high magazine depth to allow up to 18 missiles per launcher.

* RTX (Raytheon) & Rafael: This partnership is offering SkyHunter, a U.S.-manufactured variant of the Israeli Tamir interceptor used in the Iron Dome system. The team recently established a production facility in Arkansas to support high-volume manufacturing of the missile.

* Dynetics (Leidos): As the incumbent provider of the IFPC launcher, Dynetics remains a central player. While they currently provide the initial interceptor (the AIM-9X Sidewinder), the company is positioning itself as a primary integrator for the new secondary interceptor competition.

The U.S. Army plans to evaluate these digital and physical prototypes through 2026 before selecting vendors to move forward into the formal prototyping and live-fire demonstration stages.

This development addresses a critical vulnerability in the U.S. defense industrial base: the supply of solid rocket motors (SRMs). For decades, the SRM market has been a duopoly dominated by Northrop Grumman and L3Harris (Aerojet Rocketdyne). By partnering with Anduril, Boeing is validating a "non-traditional" defense entrant, potentially easing supply chain bottlenecks that have hampered missile production since the onset of the conflict in Ukraine.

Geopolitically, the IFPC program is a cornerstone of the Pacific Deterrence Initiative. The U.S. military is under pressure to deploy more "magazine depth"-cheaper, more numerous missiles-to counter the threat of massed cruise missile and drone swarms in the Indo-Pacific, particularly for the defense of critical hubs like Guam.

Source: Forecast International
Associated URL: https://dsm.forecastinternational.com/2025/12/19/boeing-anduril-face-lockheed-rtx-rafael-in-ifpc-interceptor-race/

WASHINGTON - Raytheon Co., Largo, Florida, is being awarded a $22 million firm-fixed price, cost-plus-fixed-fee, cost-plus-incentive-fee, and cost-only modification to previously awarded contract (N00024-25-C-5239) to incrementally fund CLINs for design, development, integration, test, and maintenance of system capabilities for the design agent and engineering support efforts to the critical major weapon system, Cooperative Engagement Capabilities (CEC).

Work is expected to be completed by November 2026. Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity.

Source: U.S. Navy
Associated URL: http://www.defense.gov

WASHINGTON -- On December 8, 2025, BAE Systems announced that it had been awarded a $36 million production contract from Lockheed Martin to deliver Multifunction Modular Mast (MMM) systems for integration onto U.S. Navy submarines.

The MMM system is a radio frequency receiving antenna that provides U.S. Navy submarines the ability to detect, identify, and direction-find adversary communications signals before rising to the surface. The antennas will mount on new Virginia-class submarines and feed into Lockheed Martin’s AN/BLQ-10 electronic warfare (EW) system.

The tactical communications receiving antenna resides in a composite radome. Its pressure-rated and corrosion-resistant design allows the unit to survive the harsh undersea environment and maximize signal-gathering performance while minimizing visibility of the mast and platform. The system also includes a payload module that enables the U.S. Navy to incorporate additional sensors for other mission applications.

According to Michael Rottman, Program Area Director for Maritime Sensors and Systems at BAE Systems, "The Multifunction Modular Mast system equips U.S. Navy submarines with critical capabilities to locate and identify potential threats, enabling them to analyze and respond accordingly."

Source: BAE Systems
Associated URL: https://www.baesystems.com/en/article/bae-systems-secures-$36-million-contract-to-equip-us-navy-submarines-with-multifunction-modular-masts