Pentagon’s ‘innovative commercial models’ cited for increased missile production | Defense Dollars

Global defense spending and military modernization are accelerating as rising geopolitical tensions push countries to expand missile defense capabilities and strengthen domestic production

In response, defense giants like Lockheed Martin are investing billions of dollars to scale munitions manufacturing, expand facilities across the U.S., and support next-generation defense systems

Joining us now for more is Tim Cahill, president of Missiles and Fire Control at Lockheed Martin

Thank you so much for being here today, Tim. Good morning, Justine. Thank you for having me

Of course, we have so much to get to here. First of all, for viewers who may not be familiar

give us a quick overview of Lockheed Martin's missiles and fire control business. What exactly

do you do? Oh, absolutely, Justine, happy to do that. So you might imagine we build

missile systems as well as the fire control systems that go on platforms to direct those

systems. So one of those in particular right behind me you see, the THAAD Interceptor

It is among the world's premier anti-missile missile systems. So we build defensive missiles like THAAD and the Patriot MSE

We build airborne missiles that fly off of our Air Force platforms and our international platforms, JASM and LORASM

And we build some of the strike missiles that you heard about in Ukraine and other places like PRISM and Gimler's and ATAC

Yeah, you guys do so much and you're building so much and you're actually expanding so much as well

So you've announced an $8 to $9 billion investment through 2030 to scale munitions production

What's driving that massive expansion that we're seeing right now? Well, clearly what's important is that we get capability out to the warfighter and make sure that they have what they need worldwide to deter aggression

And so clearly this problem has been brewing for a while. This administration has taken it head on, come up with some exceptionally innovative commercial models

which actually unlock the potential that you have in long-term contracts, taking that potential, turning it into corporate investment, which we are doing

and then moving forward to increase the ramps and make sure that all of the stockpiles are not just replenished but ready for any conflict that might come forward in the future And so we are ahead of that curve We are investing

We're now a billion dollars into what will be at least a $9 billion investment to expand facilities

to build up tooling, to build up the supply chain across the entire United States to deliver on that commitment

Yeah, I mean, speaking of these defense systems to keep people on the ground safe

There's been this increased discussion around this U.S. Golden Dome missile defense system

So how could that and other technologies really play a role in a strategy like that

So Golden Dome, you can imagine to first order, Golden Dome will be some of the systems like our PAC-3 MSE missile Patriot system

It'll be radars that we have in technology stores right now, which is why we can, we being the United States, can deploy these things pretty rapidly

then there's going to be some new and exciting technologies like space-based interceptors

and new innovations and new technology that will come to bear to try and catch some of these threats

just when they come off the ground instead of trying to catch all of them

right when they get to our cities or our bases here in the United States. So that's the principle around Golden Dome

It's coming together very fast. The U.S. government is moving forward with urgency

We are in a number of these efforts supporting both in Command and Control Coalition

to build the software that ties it together, as well as building some of these interceptors

that are actually going to do the hard work. And we're in some of the new technology efforts

like Space Space Interceptor. So we're supporting everywhere we can. This is a great endeavor

and we're looking forward to seeing it come to fruition. Yeah, and as that does come to fruition

there are also so many other conflicts happening around the world, global conflicts in the Middle East

in Ukraine still, so many different places. So thinking about all of these heightened tensions

and also now, especially with Iran, and how that impacts demand for missile defense systems

Tell us a little bit more about why now is so important for these systems and the other

munitions that you produce. Oh, I certainly will. So you can imagine that this started when Ukraine was invaded a number of years ago

And so it became really clear to the entire world whether you were in Europe United States Australia it didn matter But this increased recognition of the importance of first deterrence we like to be strong enough and we like all our allies to be strong enough to keep any adversary from trying to invade and attack

But then secondly, to be able to sustain those operations for an extended period of time, if necessary, if attacked

And so what's been clear, again, as the threats out there have grown in number and grown in capability, that the number of munitions that you need on your side of the equation to make sure you can, again, first deter and fight back if you need to, are in your arsenal

And so that recognition, again, is worldwide. We see that in the increased defense and security budgets of nations around the world

And our systems, United States systems, frankly, are the best in the world

So they're in high demand. Everybody wants FADs. Everybody wants Patriot MSCs, for example. Everybody wants Prisms. And we're delighted to be an export engine for the country, driving jobs, driving capability, driving high-tech systems, new technologies. And we do that as part of the global environment. So it's good for us and it's good for our allies and good for business

Yeah, I mean, thinking about this global reach that you have all around the world and then bringing that back here now to the U.S., there's a big push around reshoring critical defense production

So how important is this domestic manufacturing capacity to national security? Well, it's critical to national security

it's very important that we have the capability to supply without interruption, any kind of

interruption, be it an aggressive interruption or some other type of interruption like a pandemic

to be able to produce what we need for our military to stay safe and to keep us safe

So that's critically important. Now, in our industry, we have that capability. We have

what we need built in the United States. And we spend a lot of time in partnership

with the Department of War, ensuring that we have security of supply within the United States to make

that that happens. And so our job is to maintain that, to be vigilant

There are thousands of suppliers out there and tens of thousands of parts And so you have to keep track of all that in a global environment But we do a pretty good job of that I think and are exactly where we want to be going into this ramp providing for both our nation and for our allies

Yeah. And going into that ramp, I mean, lastly, we're just talking about all of this expansion, all of this investment. What is the signal about the future of defense spending

modernization, the next generation of missile defense? Where do you all see this going in the

next six months, the next year or two years? Well, so clearly, I think, again, as our adversaries get

more capable, we have to get more capable. So we see an entire series of new evolutions and new

systems that are coming online. I think we're going to see a mix, an increased mix of systems

that take on both the low end, the drone systems, as well as the high end systems that THAAD and

Patriot PAC-3 take on, for example. And we are involved in all those realms. For example, we have

a system that's called Sanctum. It's a counter UAS system, detects, uses AI technologies to

identify and to track drones, no matter how small or how fast they are, and then employ exactly the

amount of capability necessary to stop them and no more. That could be a laser, could be a small

missile like the Hellfire variant that we use. It could be microwave technologies where we go out

and effectively, you might say, zap the electronics on the incoming drones

So the key is going to be to be able to employ that range of technologies that are appropriate for whatever that threat is

and to build them with technologies, innovation, AI, to allow them to be adaptable

Because our adversaries don't stand still. They see what you are deploying

They try and counter it. We counter that our counter and back and forth. And so you have to put systems out there thinking about what is this going to be in 10 years, 15 years, 20 years down the line

So it's an exciting, high-tech business, and we're just delighted to be part of it

Well, that's great. Thank you so much. We really appreciate you being here today and breaking this all down for us

Tim Cahill, President of Missiles and Fire Control at Lockheed Martin, thank you so much for your time

Thank you, Justine. It's a pleasure to be with you today