Raytheon Technology, the defense contractor that produces Stinger missiles, will have difficulties replenishing its stockpiles as the weapons are being given to the Ukrainian military, the company’s CEO revealed.
As of April 22, the United States has provided more than $3.7 billion in military aid to Ukraine since Russia invaded in late February, and that sum includes more than 1,400 Stinger anti-aircraft systems, a Department of Defense readout states.
CEO Greg Hayes said during a Tuesday earnings call that Raytheon is “going to have to redesign some of the electronics in the missile and the seeker head,” which is “going to take us a little bit of time,” according to Defense One.
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The Pentagon has not ordered new Stingers for years but has ordered various parts. U.S. service members do not have much use for the weapon, which can be used quickly to defend against helicopters, planes, and drones.
Raytheon also adjusted its expected earnings for the year, at least partly due to the cessation of its work in Russia.
“We’re done in Russia, full stop … We’re not going to support the airlines,” Hayes said. “We’re not gonna support the development programs. We’re not gonna support any Russian customers going forward.”
During a meeting earlier this month between Pentagon officials and defense contractor leaders, Hayes reportedly noted that it could require six to 12 months to restart a munitions production line, according to Reuters.
Top Pentagon officials met with the leaders of the eight largest Defense Department contractors earlier this month to discuss the military aid the U.S. is providing to Ukrainian forces.
Deputy Secretary of Defense Dr. Kathleen H. Hicks; Andrew Hunter, undersecretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment; and other senior Department of Defense leaders participated in the classified meeting on Wednesday with representatives from Boeing Defense, Space & Security; L3Harris Technologies; Raytheon Technologies; BAE Systems; Lockheed Martin Corporation; Huntington Ingalls Industries; General Dynamics; and Northrop Grumman.
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“There are some very specific issues with regard to Stinger and some obsolescence issues that we have to overcome,” Hicks said, according to Breaking Defense. “That’s because we in the US, we’re focusing ourselves forward on new capability. So now we want to make sure we can produce, or see what it takes to produce, what we need for this crisis.”
