Story perspectives

Fire Point Targets First Intercept by 2027, Sub-$1M Missile

5/19/2026

Summary

Fire Point Intercept

Fire Point will attempt the FP-7.x interceptor’s first interception by end-2027.
The 7.25-metre missile costs under $1 million per intercept, flies at 1,500-2,000 m/s, and carries an infrared seeker and optional Diehl Defence radar seeker.
The system will use radar options from Sweden, France and Germany, a Weibel fire-control radar, a Kongsberg command centre via Link 16, and is being developed with MBDA and Diehl Defence, with fuel plant planned in Denmark.

Summary

Army Issues RFI

The Army issued a May 15 2026 RFI for a Patriot interceptor costing up to $1 million, with four sub-components capped at $250,000.
The RFI splits the interceptor into motor, seeker, fire-control and guidance contracts to source best-of-breed components.
Secretary Dan Driscoll said the Army will retain IP and use manufacturing to speed production.
A 2024 contract for 870 PAC-3 MSE missiles cost $4.5 billion—about $4 million each—showing the Pentagon’s push for cheaper munitions with non-traditional partners.

Summary

Lockheed QuadStar

Lockheed Martin’s NGSRI program aims to replace the Stinger missile with a next-generation short-range air-defense system.
The QuadStar missile completed a Seeker Characterization Flight Test from a Command Launch Assembly, exceeding the Stinger’s range.
The test recorded 100 % seeker success, engaged unmanned rotary-wing and fixed-wing targets, and was finished in under six months.
Randy Crites, vice president of Lockheed Martin Advanced Programs, praised the team’s innovative approach and agility.

History

Historical Context

During the 1991 Gulf War the U.S. Army fielded Patriot batteries, exposing the limits of the original anti-air missiles and prompting the development of the hit-to-kill PAC-3 interceptor, first deployed in 1997. Raytheon later supplied 200 PAC-3 launchers at about $4 million each under a $1.2 billion program, shaping today’s modular air-defense approach.

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Fire Point Intercept

Fire Point will attempt the FP-7.x interceptor’s first interception by end-2027.
The 7.25-metre missile costs under $1 million per intercept, flies at 1,500-2,000 m/s, and carries an infrared seeker and optional Diehl Defence radar seeker.
The system will use radar options from Sweden, France and Germany, a Weibel fire-control radar, a Kongsberg command centre via Link 16, and is being developed with MBDA and Diehl Defence, with fuel plant planned in Denmark.

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