MOD to sustain 400 UK jobs with multi-million pound missile contract

The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has handed a nine-figure contract for the production of new heat-seeking missiles to international munitions manufacturer MBDA, safeguarding hundreds of jobs across the UK.

The £184m deal, which will sustain around 400 jobs, will see US-headquartered MBDA provide the MOD with an additional stockpile of an updated version of the ASRAAM missile.

The Royal Air Force and Royal Navy’s F-35B Lightning II combat jets will now be able to use the air-to-air weapon beyond 2022.

Work to integrate the UK-designed and manufactured ASRAAM onto the F-35 fleet will be delivered as part of a separate contract.

According to the MOD, the ASRAAM uses a “sophisticated” infrared seeker and is capable of engaging air targets ranging in size from small drones to large multi-engined aircraft.

The contract forms part of the MOD’s £178bn Equipment Plan, backed by a defence budget that will rise each year between now and the end of the decade. The MOD has an overarching agreement with MBDA that will sustaining around 200 jobs at the firm’s sites in Stevenage, Bristol and Bolton, with a further 200 safeguarded in the supply chain.

Work on the new ASRAAM stockpile will be carried out at MBDA’s upcoming £40m manufacturing facility on the Logistic North commercial scheme in Bolton.

Harriett Baldwin, the Minister for Defence Procurement, said: “Wholly designed and built in the UK, this air-to-air missile on our F-35 aircraft will secure cutting-edge air power for the UK for years to come.”

Tony Douglas, the chief exec of the MOD’s Defence Equipment and Support organisation, said: “ASRAAM will provide vital offensive and defensive options for UK F-35 pilots against a wide range of air-to-air threats.

“The project to update the weapon and integrate it with the F-35, the world’s most advanced combat aircraft, provides a clear example of the MOD and UK industry working effectively together to provide our UK Armed Forces with the best equipment possible.”