The U.S Army awarded a $212 million contract to Raytheon to continue improvements to the combat-proven Patriot Air and Missile Defense System.  The improvements, which will enhance Patriot's capability and readiness, are funded by the US and the 12 other Patriot partner nations through a shared engineering services agreement.

“The U.S. and other Patriot partner nations have made significant investments over the years, so that  Patriot can maintain a high readiness rate and outpace evolving threats on the modern battlefield,” said Ralph Acaba, Vice President of Integrated Air and Missile Defense at Raytheon's Integrated Defense Systems business.

“This latest contract builds on those previous investments and helps ensure that fielded systems in the inventories of the 13-nation Patriot partnership are prepared to perform whenever and wherever they are called upon,” he added.  

Under the contract, issued by the U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command, Redstone Arsenal, Ala., Raytheon will provide software development, systems analysis, testing and logistics support, and other country-specific system requirements.

Work will be performed by Raytheon in Andover, Billerica, Burlington and Tewksbury, Massachusetts, El Segundo, California; El Paso, Texas; Huntsville, Alabama, Norfolk, Virginia; Pelham, New Hampshire, and White Sands, New Mexico.

The contract was awarded on March 18, 2015, and announced via a Department of Defense press release.

Patriot is the world's most modern and capable air and missile defense system, providing protection against a full range of advanced threats, including aircraft, tactical ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles. Continually upgraded and enhanced to reflect the latest technology, Patriot is the system of choice for 13 nations around the globe.

Raytheon is the provider of Patriot Air and Missile Defense Systems, both domestically and internationally, and system integrator for PAC-3 missiles.