The US military modifies the SLAM-ER contract to replenish Tomahawk missile inventory and accelerate the production of warhead casings

The U.S. Burke-class destroyer launched Tomahawk missiles. In order to attack Iran, the U.S. military has consumed a large amount of ammunition stocks. (Reuters file photo)

[Reporter Tu Jumin/Comprehensive Report] The U.S. Navy has recently used a large number of "Tomahawk" cruise missiles in military operations in the Middle East, and the pressure on the inventory to bottom out continues to increase. Foreign military news website reported that contract documents released by the US on September 2 showed that the US military will directly modify the SLAM-ER missile contract signed in 2019, requiring General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems (GD-OTS) to produce and deliver a batch of Tomahawk missile warhead casings within nine months, thereby shortening procurement and certification time and accelerating the replenishment of Tomahawk inventory.

According to a report by the foreign military news website "Navy News", the contract document clearly stated that this accelerated delivery arrangement was due to the U.S. Navy's immediate need to increase missile production due to the "current international conflict." The relevant warhead casings will be used in the U/RGM-109E "Tactical Tomahawk" (TACTOM) and will be assembled on newly manufactured and re-certified Block IV and Block V Tomahawk missiles.

According to reports, the U.S. military has launched hundreds of Tomahawk cruise missiles at targets in Iran since launching Operation Epic Fury, which has also drawn greater attention to the remaining inventory of the U.S. military and whether the United States can maintain long-term ammunition consumption if a larger-scale conflict breaks out in the Indo-Pacific region.

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General Dynamics currently produces warhead casings for both the AGM-84 H/K SLAM-ER missile and the Tomahawk cruise missile. Therefore, the U.S. Navy chose to directly integrate the Tomahawk missile-related production capabilities into the existing SLAM-ER missile contract, rather than re-bidding or finding a second supplier to avoid a lengthy lead-in process. The contract also requires that the first batch of equipment must be inspected no later than the first quarter of 2027.

This report stated that in addition to Tomahawk missiles, the U.S. Department of Defense has also promoted a number of production-increasing arrangements with military industries, including the Navy's Standard III (SM-3) anti-ballistic missiles and the Army's Patriot III Extended Range (PAC-3 MSE) interceptor missiles. This reflects that the U.S. military is accelerating to replenish the critical precision ammunition that has been consumed in large quantities in recent conflicts.

The AGM-84 H/K SLAM-ER missile is a member of the Harpoon missile family. It is an air-launched version of the cruise missile. It has deep technical roots with the Tomahawk. The titanium alloy penetrating warhead and folding wings of the SLAM-ER are both derived from the Tomahawk missile design. The warhead casings of both missiles are also supplied by General Dynamics GD-OTS; however, the complete warhead models used by the two missiles are different.