Overview
- The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center at Eglin awarded the Lot Two firm‑fixed‑price contract on June 5, 2026, for about $240.9–$241 million to Kongsberg to produce ready‑to‑fire JSM rounds, containers, test hardware and support with work performed in Kongsberg, Norway and completion due by Nov. 30, 2028.
- The award was sole‑source and funded from FY‑2024 and FY‑2025 procurement accounts with $137.97 million and $102.93 million apportioned respectively at the time of award.
- The Air Force’s FY‑27 budget projects a final JSM inventory of 263 missiles and requests purchases of 100 missiles in FY‑27 and 41 in FY‑28, signaling larger planned buys after this Lot Two production run.
- The JSM is engineered to fit inside the F‑35A internal weapons bay so aircraft retain stealth until release and is optimized for long‑range strike against ships and land targets; open‑source analysis places its range near 280 km when launched from altitude but that figure has not been officially confirmed.
- Kongsberg is the sole manufacturer and the JSM shares seeker and guidance lineage with Kongsberg’s Naval Strike Missile, a tie that deepens U.S.–Norway defense industrial cooperation and gives commanders a new stand‑off option that keeps pilots farther from shipboard air defenses.