Northrop Grumman to double production of GMLRS engines

19 October, 2024 A GMLRS missile. Photo: Northrop Grumman Northrop Grumman plans to double the production of rocket engines for GMLRS missiles.

The company is expected to produce 14,000 rocket engines per year, Defense One reported. This will roughly double production volumes as the Pentagon works to replace weapons transferred to the Ukrainian Armed Forces and rebuild stockpiles. For the past four years, the company has been supplying from 5,000 to 6,000 engines for GMLRS (Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System) missiles per year.

But over the past couple of years, "the demand has been pushing" Northrop Grumman to produce more than 10,000 engines a year.

A Lockheed Martin GMLRS (Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System) missile for M142 HIMARS and M270 systems.

2021. United States.

Photo: T. A. O'Brien

Northrop manufactures rocket engines at facilities in West Virginia and Maryland as well as in Utah.

Over the past six years, Northrop has spent a billion dollars to increase the production capacity at these three facilities. Also in August, it became known that Lockheed Martin and General Dynamics would cooperate in the production of GMLRS projectiles for HIMARS. General Dynamics will help with the production of solid rocket engines.

This agreement will allow Lockheed Martin and General Dynamics to increase the production of the in-demand solutions faster in the future.

GMLRS-type rocket launch. Photo from open sources

The 227mm GMLRS series of American guided missiles has been manufactured at Lockheed Martin's facilities for many years. The munitions are used in the M270 MLRS and M142 HIMARS multiple launch rocket systems.

Both systems are also in service in Ukraine.

In January, it became known that Australia would launch the production of guided missiles for the M142 HIMARS MLRS.

The contract includes the transfer of important technologies from the United States that are necessary for the production of GMLRS.