After facing some hard truths about its missile stockpiles, the Pentagon has begun a multi-year process to buy thousands more every year.
Fights in the Red Sea and our ongoing Global War on Terror have not been kind to the inventory of highly capable missiles like the SM-6 and AMRAAM. Put frankly, we are running out by using them on cheap drones like the Shahed-136.
The problem is that we don’t build or buy enough to replenish our stocks, so the Pentagon has entered into framework agreements with RTX and Lockheed Martin to produce thousands more key missiles each year.
That isn’t the whole story, though. Lower-cost but still highly capable munitions are filling in the gaps and freeing up the higher-end weapons for what they were designed for.
In this video, we discuss all the missiles the Pentagon wants, how they plan to accomplish this, and what cheaper options are stepping up to the plate.
00:00 – Intro
01:07 – Why the Pentagon wants more missiles
03:06 – The Pentagon’s ask
06:18 – The cost curve problem
08:12 – Cheaper solutions
12:37 – What this all means
14:25 – Limits and counterpoints
16:39 – Channel updates
Written by: Kyle Gunn
Edited by: Savvy
Midnight Hammer: https://youtu.be/HyNo5H8bdgg
Golden Dome: https://youtu.be/6a_xjXasxgQ
Coyote Drone: https://youtu.be/nPMqgVFNMTQ
Red Wolf: https://youtu.be/SyFBeBg5WCk
Task & Purpose is a military news and culture-oriented channel. We want to foster discussion about the defense industry.
Join our Discord server: https://discord.gg/m4EyHr96HR
Merchandise: store.taskandpurpose.com
Like this video? You’ll love https://taskandpurpose.com/
Sign up for the T&P newsletter: https://taskandpurpose.com/email-signup/
And you can follow us on social, too:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/taskandpurpose/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/taskandpurpose
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@taskandpurpose
