The Army on Friday said it recently awarded RTX [RTX] a $75 million contract for production of 600 Coyote 2C interceptors.
The deal, officially awarded on Jan. 16, utilized a rapid acquisition authority and will go toward supporting the Army’s counter-drone mission.
“The contract supports a Coyote Interceptor demand increase and subsequent need to increase production capacity,” the Army said in a statement. “The Coyote is a key component of the counter-UAS system of systems.”
The Army described RTX’s Coyote as a “ground-launched, radar-guided interceptor, with kinetic and non-kinetic variants, that integrates into fixed site-low, slow, small-unmanned aircraft system integrated defeat systems and mobile-slow, small-unmanned aircraft system integrated defeat systems.”
An Army notice published in December detailed the service’s plans to purchase at least 6,700 Coyote kinetic and non-kinetic interceptors between fiscal year 2025 and 2029 to counter enemy unmanned aircraft systems “operating at various speeds and altitudes which are targeting both U.S. and their allies’ interests at home and abroad” (Defense Daily, Dec. 21).
The notice stated the plan includes purchasing at least 6,000 kinetic interceptors, 700 non-kinetic interceptors, 252 fixed-site and 25 mobile launchers, 118 fixed-site and 33 mobile Ku-band Radio Frequency System—KuRFS—360-degree radars, which sense incoming drones, rockets, artillery, and mortars and can cue the Coyote interceptors.
Lt. Gen Sean Gainey, who previously led the Joint Counter-Small UAS Office, has called the Coyote a “game changer” and said the interceptor has demonstrated the ability to engage targets at “very impressive” ranges (Defense Daily, Aug. 8 2023).
The State Department in late November 2022 approved a potential $1 billion foreign military sale with Qatar for 10 Fixed Site-Low, Slow, Small Unmanned Aircraft System Integrated Defeat Systems (FS-LIDS), which would include 200 of RTX’s Coyote Block 2 interceptors (Defense Daily, Nov. 29 2022).