Pentagon Gives Aerojet Rocketdyne $216M to Boost Production of Weapons Used in Ukraine – By Marcus Weisgerber (Defense One) / Apr 14 2023
The deal will help speed up manufacturing of Javelin, Stinger, and GMLRS rockets.
The Pentagon will invest $216 million to expand and modernize Aerojet Rocketdyne manufacturing facilities in Arkansas, Alabama, and Virginia in an attempt to boost production of rocket motors used in a host of missiles given to Ukraine.
The investment, announced Friday afternoon, comes amid a Pentagon effort to replenish depleted weapon stockpiles.
“This critical investment will modernize rocket propellant and motor production in the United States, in addition to creating technical and skilled labor jobs at multiple domestic facilities,” Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks said in a statement.
The deal was brokered by the Pentagon’s Office of Manufacturing Capability Expansion and Investment Prioritization. Pentagon acquisition Chief Bill LaPlante and Doug Bush, the Army’s top weapons buyer, visited Aerojet’s Camden, Arkansas facility, one of the sites slated to benefit from the investment, in August.
