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@pirrer · 2026-10-13 01:18

Anduril (@anduriltech) unveiled Steelfin, a family of surface-to-air interceptor missiles, on October 12. Anduril executive Steve Milano told reporters that a configuration tailored to the PAC-3-type mission would cover 80% of that mission at less than half the cost. That is a company claim. Anduril has not published a price or detailed performance figures, and it has not explained how it arrived at 80%. The benchmark is the PAC-3 MSE, one of the U.S. Army's primary missile-defense interceptors. The Army's fiscal 2027 budget documents list 244 missiles for $1.298 billion, a gross unit cost of about $5.3 million each. Anduril's press release says air defense batteries are too often forced to use expensive interceptors against lower-cost threats. It says that trade can be acceptable in one engagement but is punishing over a sustained period. Anduril says the savings would come from a two-stage design and shared parts. The first stage is a booster, and the company says it is looking at 10-, 18-, and 21-inch diameters for different ranges and altitudes. The second stage is the terminal interceptor. Anduril says every version's terminal interceptor would use the same baseline airframe, avionics, software, and flight-control system while accommodating different seekers, the sensors that find the target. The release lists cruise, ballistic, and hypersonic missiles as the threats it is meant to cover. By Anduril's account, a new mission does not require a new missile design. The company says every version could use the same production line, tooling, technicians, and facilities. That would let it surge production of whichever one is in demand. Anduril says it plans to produce several thousand Steelfin missiles a year in the near term. The release says Steelfin is compatible with the Patriot's M903A2 launcher and the Mk 41 Vertical Launch System used on warships. It also says Steelfin is designed to work with fire-control systems such as Aegis and IBCS. The program is early. Steelfin has not flown. Anduril says it has completed ballistic testing with representative air vehicles and plans to begin flight tests in 2027. Milano expects full-rate production at the end of 2028 or the start of 2029. The War Zone notes that Anduril has yet to develop or produce a surface-to-air missile. It also says a common baseline meant to cover many missions has historically been hard to deliver. Lockheed Martin (@LockheedMartin), which builds the PAC-3, is working on both the high end and the low end. PAC-3 Edge was announced October 9 and is designed to reach higher altitudes and longer ranges against hypersonic threats. Testing is scheduled for 2027, with fielding planned for 2031. PAC-3 ACE, announced July 20, is a lower-cost interceptor designed to cost less than half as much as the PAC-3 MSE. In May, the Army asked industry for ideas for an interceptor that costs less than $1 million. Demand for the current PAC-3 MSE is high. The Army's fiscal 2027 budget request asks for 2,798 missiles: the 244 in the regular procurement line plus 2,554 in mandatory funding. Taiwan is waiting for 102 more from the same production base. In March, Taiwan's defense ministry said the U.S. still expected deliveries to begin this year. On August 26, The Washington Post reported that a Taiwanese official expected significant delays. The first test of Anduril's claim is the 2027 flight-test campaign.

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