Overview
- The NATO SEASPARROW Program office and prime contractor Raytheon announced on Nov. 2 that delivery of the 1,000th Evolved SeaSparrow Missile Block 2 completed a run that doubled deliveries since the program reached 500 in June 2025.
- Block 2 adds an active radar seeker that lets the missile autonomously find and track targets in the terminal phase, can be quad-packed four to a Mk 41 VLS cell, and has a reported range of about 50 km and speeds above Mach 4.
- Industrial output is backed by recent U.S. contract funding, including an April modification worth about $833 million to Raytheon that covers additional missiles and launch canisters through September 2030, and licensed production in Japan by Mitsubishi Electric.
- Operational pressures from repeated air attacks in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden have driven higher interceptor use and highlighted the limits of ship magazine depth and the complexity of at-sea VLS reloading for sailors.
- Program managers say the milestone reinforces multinational logistics and interoperability for the 12-nation SEASPARROW consortium, and the U.S. Navy is already seeking industry ideas for a Next Significant Variant to follow or operate alongside Block 2.