Lockheed Martin has received a $1.1-billion contract to provide the US Navy with its first sea-based hypersonic strike capability.
As part of the agreement, the company will integrate the Conventional Prompt Strike (CPS) weapon system onto Zumwalt-class guided missile destroyers.
It will also provide launcher and weapon control systems as the integrated missile components of the naval platform.
According to Lockheed Martin vice president Steve Layne, early design work for integrating hypersonic strike capability onto surface warships is already underway.
“Lockheed Martin continues to advance hypersonic strike capability for the United States through this new contract,” he said. “Our team looks forward to supporting the warfighter by providing more options to further protect America at sea.”
The defense firm is expected to finish installing the CPS surface-launched, sea-based hypersonic strike capability by the mid-2020s.
‘An Important Step’
Lockheed Martin’s CPS is a hypersonic boost-glide weapon system designed to survive against sophisticated enemy air defenses.
It enables long-range missile flight at a speed greater than Mach 5, or five times the speed of sound.
The weapon is highly maneuverable, making it suitable for highly-mobile Zumwalt-class destroyers.
The company stated that integrating the CPS onto US Navy warships is a necessary and important step in equipping warfighters with a modern and more lethal strike capability.
It vows to leverage its expertise in naval systems and hypersonic strike integration to support a wide variety of maritime missions.
