The US Navy has launched market research for a new long-range anti-radiation missile that can strike airborne and ground threats.
Anti-radar solutions are designed to track and disrupt adversarial assets emitting radio frequencies.
The service named the capability the “Advanced Emission Suppression Missile,” which is planned to have optimized frequency coverage, the ability to target advanced radar systems, GPS and inertial navigation with anti-jam capability, and the “potential for pre-emptive targeting capabilities.”
The weapon must integrate with the F/A-18E/F, EA-18G, and F-35, and comply with open architecture standards to support future airframes.
Additionally, the missile must demonstrate Technology Readiness Level 7 or higher, which is the Pentagon’s standard for validating a prototype in real-world operations.
The force plans to field the weapon within two years of a contract award, with an annual production rate of up to 300 missiles throughout the program.
Interested industry partners are invited to send capability statements by March 2026.
Current Inventory
The notice did not reveal whether the upcoming missile would be adopted to replace existing assets. Currently, the US military employs the Air-to-Ground High-Speed Anti-Radiation Missile or AGM-88 HARM as its primary counter-radiation projectile.
That weapon was introduced in the 1980s and is now being deployed by the Ukrainian Armed Forces in its war against Russia.
Since its inception, the missile has undergone multiple upgrades to match modern threats. Its latest configuration, the AGM-88G, offers greater reach.
The AGM-88 has a length of 14 feet (4 meters), wingspan of 4 feet (1 meter), and diameter of 10 inches (25 centimeters).
It is powered by a dual-thrust rocket engine and uses a 150-pound (68-kilogram) blast-fragmentation warhead.
The system has an operational range of up to 160 nautical miles (184 miles/296 kilometers), depending on its variant, and a top speed of Mach 2.9 (2,225 miles/3,581 kilometers per hour).
