The United States has resumed funding for the program of a new interceptor missile for the Patriot air defense system, which had been halted last year by the Biden administration.
Colby Badhwar reported on this, citing a budget document from the U.S. Armed Forces for the 2026 fiscal year.
Funding in the amount of $152 million will be allocated for research, development, testing, and evaluation of the new missile under the Lower Tier Future Interceptor (LTFI) program for the 2026 fiscal year.
According to the Pentagon’s new position, these funds are allocated to support the Total Effector Rapid Prototyping initiative, which aims at the rapid development of prototypes for advanced interceptor systems. This is critically important for strengthening U.S. missile defense, particularly the Golden Dome system.
The main contractor for the development of the new missile, which is intended to replace the MIM-104F MSE in service, is Lockheed Martin. At the same time, Raytheon, which also participated in the LTFI program, is expected to rejoin the effort.
In addition, the companies are preparing to upgrade the existing stockpile of PAC-3 missiles, as the demand for specialized interceptor missiles has significantly increased due to the threat of missile attacks on European countries.
Lockheed Martin is also working on integrating these missiles onto ships, positioning them as a more affordable alternative to the expensive Standard Missile family.
In June 2025, the U.S. Navy will fund integration work to adapt Patriot missiles to the shipborne Aegis Combat System.
A total of $416 million will be allocated for this work, which will be directed toward software development, system integration, and live-fire testing.
Militarnyi previously reported that the Pentagon planned the first test of the Golden Dome missile defense system for late 2028 – during the U.S. presidential election period.
Plans to test the comprehensive missile defense system, which is intended to protect U.S. territory just three years after the announcement of its development, align with Donald Trump’s promise to establish it before the end of his presidential term.
One source within the Department of Defense stated that the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) planned to name the test FTI-X (Flight Test Integrated). As part of this test, the sensors and weaponry of the Golden Dome system will operate in a single network to intercept multiple simultaneous targets.
