Page 14 - Australian Defence Magazine October 2021

14 NEWS REVIEW INDUSTRY UPDATE
OCTOBER 2021 | WWW.AUSTRALIANDEFENCE.COM.AU
US CONFIRMS SM-6 AND SM-2 MISSILES FOR HUNTER CLASS
LEFT: An SM-6 missile fired from
the guided missile destroyer USS John Paul Jones intercepts a medium-range ballistic missile target.
EWEN LEVICK | MELBOURNE
THE US State Department has approved the provision of defence services to Aus- tralia related to the future purchase of Raytheon’s SM-6 Block I and SM-2 Block IIIC missiles for the Hunter class frigates.
Raytheon’s SM-2 Block IIICs will re- place RAN’s current stock of Block IIIB missiles. The SM-6 Block I is a longer- range air defence weapon that can also be used as an anti-ship weapon and may in the future provide a ballistic missile defence capability, which would require a Baseline 9 configuration for the Aegis combat system on board the Hunter class.
The services include development; engi- neering, integration, and testing (EI&T); obsolescence engineering activities re- quired to ensure readiness; US Govern- ment and contractor engineering/techni-
cal assistance, and related studies and analysis support; technical and logistics support services; and other related ele- ments of program and logistical support.
The total estimated value is US$350 million (A$481 million).
In January this year, former Minister for Defence Linda Reynolds re-announced
the acquisition of the SM 2 Block IIIC and SM 6 Block I that was originally forecast in the Defence Strategy Update and Force Structure Plan released in July 2020.
The FSP allocates up to $24 billion in total for maritime guided weapons, which fall under the umbrella of Project Sea 1300 Phase 1 (Navy Guided Weapons).
BAE SYSTEMS
US MISSILE DEFENCE AGENCY