Navy Scrambles To Ramp Up Tomahawk Production After Iran War Burns Through Arsenal

The U.S. Navy is racing to ramp up production of Tomahawk cruise missiles, offensive weapons used to strike enemy targets, after the Iran war consumed an estimated third of America’s prewar stockpile.

Naval engineers at China Lake, California, are expanding warhead manufacturing capabilities to prevent production bottlenecks as the military attempts to replenish its depleted arsenal of long-range strike weapons, according to a Nov. 9 Navy report. The initiative supports a seven-year, $22.9 billion contract awarded to Raytheon in August, intended to increase annual production to more than 1,000 missiles, according to RTX.

Unlike defensive missile interceptors, Tomahawks are offensive weapons designed to destroy enemy targets rather than protect American forces from incoming attacks. Launched from warships and submarines, the long-range cruise missiles can strike heavily defended military installations deep inside hostile territory, according to the Navy.

Defensive interceptors, including Patriot missiles and the Navy’s Standard Missile-3 (SM-3), serve a fundamentally different purpose. Rather than striking enemy installations, these weapons are designed to intercept incoming threats, including ballistic missiles, before they reach their intended targets, according to the Navy.

Tomahawks give American commanders the ability to launch precision strikes against enemy infrastructure, weapons facilities and other high-value targets from hundreds of miles away. The Block Va variant also has capabilities designed to strike enemy warships, expanding the missile’s offensive applications beyond land targets, according to the Navy.

RTX did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The United States purchased an average of just 86 Tomahawks annually over the past decade, leaving manufacturers poorly positioned to rapidly replace weapons expended during the conflict, according to a Nov. 10 CSIS report.

The production shortfalls have also raised concerns about America’s ability to sustain a potential conflict with China, with analysts warning that rebuilding sufficient missile inventories could take years, according to CSIS.

Tomahawks are long-range, precision-guided cruise missiles capable of striking targets approximately 1,000 miles away, allowing American destroyers and submarines to attack enemy positions without approaching heavily defended coastlines, according to CSIS.