Norwegian anti-ship missile NSM to become the main missile for the US Navy

Norwegian defence company Kongsberg has announced that it has signed an agreement with the US Department of Defence to supply Naval Strike Missiles to the Navy and Marine Corps for five years.

Here's What We Know

The contract has a fixed price of $960.77 million and an option to extend the total value to $1.14 billion.

For Kongsberg, this missile contract is the largest in its history, finally cementing the NSM's status as a bestseller.

At the same time, for the United States, it is not only about equipping the Independence and Freedom-class littoral combat ships and the latest Constellation frigates, but also about strengthening the Marine Corps with NMESIS robotic launchers, of which about 100 units have already been ordered.

The NSM is also actively used by other countries, including Poland, Romania, Canada, Germany, Australia, Malaysia, Spain, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Belgium and Latvia. The US contract also includes the construction of a plant in Virginia by Kongsberg to produce Naval Strike Missiles and the airborne version of the missile, the Joint Strike Missile (JSM).

For those who do not know

The Naval Strike Missile is distinguished by its compact size and the use of stealth technology. The missile has a length of 3.96 metres, a launch weight of 407 kg (including 120 kg of warhead) and a range of over 185 km. Its feature is the rejection of an active radar homing head in favour of a thermal imaging head that recognises targets and provides the ability to hit both sea and land targets at long distances.

Source: Defence Express