RTX Announces Up to $24.4 Billion Navy Contract for SM-6 Interceptors; Pentagon Notice Not Yet Posted

RTX said Thursday that its Raytheon business has secured a five-year U.S. Navy contract, with two additional option years, valued up to $24.4 billion for Standard Missile-6 interceptors, a potentially huge munitions award that would rank among the company’s largest announced this year. The announcement came from RTX in a press release dated Oct. 1 from Arlington, Virginia. As of Thursday, however, public contract feeds from the Department of Defense, the Navy’s Naval Sea Systems Command and the System for Award Management did not yet show a matching official award notice with a contract number, contracting office or obligated amount.

According to RTX, the contract is meant to support a “consistent, reliable supply” of SM-6 missiles for the Navy. If fully exercised, it would be a major production and procurement commitment for one of the Navy’s most important interceptors, with implications for Raytheon’s manufacturing plans, backlog and supplier base.

The SM-6 is a surface-launched, multi-mission missile used on Aegis-equipped U.S. Navy ships. It is best known for long-range air defense, but it also has demonstrated roles in terminal ballistic missile defense and anti-surface strike. That flexibility has made it central to the Navy’s layered defenses at a time when the Pentagon is pushing industry to expand munitions output.

Phil Jasper, president of Raytheon, said in RTX’s Oct. 1 release: “SM-6's multi-mission capability is vital to our customer, and Raytheon is intensely focused on meeting the demand. By continuously investing in our operations and facilities, we are removing constraints and boosting capacity to ensure we deliver this critical capability our sailors depend on.”

RTX tied Thursday’s announcement to framework agreements it said it reached with the Department of Defense in February 2026 to increase munitions production. In those earlier statements, the company said it planned to lift annual SM-6 output to more than 500 missiles through facility and workforce investments. The latest contract announcement suggests those plans are now feeding into a much larger, multiyear supply arrangement for the Navy.

The broader budget context shows the missile was already embedded in Navy planning. Fiscal 2026 Navy weapons procurement documents refer to multiyear procurement of SM-6 IA missiles and cite procurement of 139 missiles in FY2026. Allied demand also exists: U.S. arms-sale notifications in 2026 included SM-6 requests from partners including Japan and Germany.

Still, key government contracting details had not yet appeared publicly as of Oct. 1. That means the size of the award is, for now, confirmed publicly by RTX rather than by a matching Pentagon contract notice identifying the specific office, contract number or funds obligated at award.