The US Army’s Stinger surface-to-air missile replacement, the Next-Generation Short-Range Interceptor (NGSRI), is continuing to make developmental progress.
Washington issued a request for information in 2022 and contracted RTX and Lockheed Martin in September 2023 to develop an anti-aircraft weapon replacement with enhanced capabilities, such as improved speed, lethality, and jamming resistance.
Lockheed informed Defense News that it received positive feedback for the two soldier touchpoints it conducted and is preparing for flight tests this year, while RTX completed a series of 10 NGSRI subsystem demonstrations in recent months.
The replacement program will run for five years, with the selected system from the winning manufacturer anticipated to undergo low-rate production by 2028.
Next-Generation Short-Range Interceptor
In February 2025, RTX announced that it tested the capabilities of its proposed NGSRI, such as its advanced seeker, flight rocket motor, man-portable command launch assembly, and warhead.
Additionally, the potential anti-aircraft replacement was evaluated on its critical missile functions, including tracking, guidance, aerodynamic control, fuzing, and safety.
Following this, the US Army and Marines will test the system to provide feedback before a system flight test demonstration later this year.
“These successful subsystem demonstrations are a crucial step in meeting the US Army’s range and performance requirements for this transformational short-range air defense capability,” said Tom Laliberty, president of Land & Air Defense Systems at Raytheon.
“We are confident in our ability to rapidly deliver the Army an affordable, low-risk, highly producible NGSRI solution.”
Stinger Missiles
Operational since the early 1980s, FIM-92 Stinger missiles are also known as Man-Portable Air Defense System (MANPADS).
Ground troops can fire the weapon from their shoulder to engage enemy aircraft and helicopter targets at a range of up to 5 miles (8 kilometers) and altitudes of up to 10,000 feet (3,048 meters).
These combat-proven missiles were retrofitted with proximity fuzes in 2019, enabling its lethality against unmanned aerial systems.
Under the Stinger Service Life Extension Program, the US armed forces have been refurbishing existing units to extend their service life by 10 years.
Together with allies like Germany, Washington has been transferring these anti-aircraft weapons to Ukraine for use against Russian targets since the outbreak of the war in February 2022.
