Kongsberg has signed a bridging-phase contract with the Norwegian Defence Logistics Organization (NDLO), which will lead to Phase 3 of the joint strike missile (JSM) development.
Signed prior to parliamentary proceedings and approval of the entire JSM development Phase 3, the NOK480m ($78.2m) contract is expected to ensure competence and progress between Phase 2 and Phase 3 of the missile development.
Kongsberg Group CEO Walter Qvam said the international F-35 user consortium, with the US as the largest, is expressing great interest in the JSM.
”Therefore we are very pleased with parliamentary support of the development and that the Norwegian Government is facilitating further development through all phases,” Qvam said.
Kongsberg Defence Systems CEO Harald Annestad said the company tied links with several Norwegian subcontractors through Phase 1 and 2, qualifying them for Phase 3 and serial production.
Annestad said, ”In Phase 3 we will engage even more suppliers related to the new tasks.
”In future full-scale production the JSM project will provide more than 450 jobs in Kongsberg and provide significant assignments to more than 100 subcontractors for several decades.”
Finalised by the two sides in 2011, the JSM development Phase 2 contract involved detailed design and a successful integration check for the F-35 JSF fighter, the F-16 and the F-18 aircraft.
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Under Phase 3, the missile will be completed and ready for serial production, with several units produced for testing from fighter jets in multiple practical exercises.
Developed in collaboration with the Norwegian Ministry of Defence (MoD), the JSM is a long-range anti-surface missile primarily designed to integrate within the F-35’s internal weapons bay, enabling engagement of both land and naval objects protected by advanced defence systems.
