Marine Corps to Procure Naval Strike Missile

NATIONAL
HARBOR, Md. — Using the congressionally approved Other Transaction Authority
with the Marine Corps Systems Command, Raytheon will integrate the Naval Strike
Missile (NSM) into the Marine Corps’ existing force structure.

In recent
years the Corps has determined a need to field an anti-ship missile to defend
its forces ashore and the fleet that supports them.

Randy
Kempton, Raytheon’s NSM program director, briefing reporters at the Navy
League’s Sea-Air-Space exposition here, was not at liberty to discuss which
platforms would deploy the NSM. He did say the Corps had a lot of integration
options and that the missile would be the same as the one on order with the U.S.
Navy.

The Navy has
selected the Naval Strike Missile for its littoral combat ships and
new-generation guided-missile frigate.

The NSM is a fifth-generation
long-range precision-strike cruise missile originally designed by Kongsberg. A
mobile, land-based version is deployed with the coastal defense forces of
Poland.

The missile
is produced “in partnership with Norway and its defense leader Kongsberg,” a
May 7 Raytheon release said. “The Marine Corps’ selection of the Navy’s
anti-ship missile enhances joint interoperability and reduces costs and
logistical burdens.”