Pentagon signs seven-year deal with BAE for 25,000 APKWS guidance kits annually

The Pentagon has concluded a new agreement to purchase laser-guidance kits that turn rockets into drone-killing weapons.

BAE Systems and the Defense Department announced a framework deal of up to seven years for 25,000 Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS) guidance kits annually for the U.S. military.

An additional 10,000 kits could be produced each year for international customers, who are increasingly interested in the system.

What Is APKWS?

APKWS is a laser-guidance kit that converts 2.75-inch unguided rockets into precision munitions. It is currently fielded by the U.S. Air Force, Army, Marine Corps, and Navy, as well as U.S. allies.

APKWS has become the preferred method for U.S. warplanes to down drones fired by Iran and Iranian-backed militias in the Middle East over the past few years. But it is not just an air-to-air weapon. APKWS munitions can also be fitted to various platforms for air-to-surface, surface-to-surface, and surface-to-air use.

A Cost-Effective Alternative

APKWS is an attractive capability for the Pentagon because of its low cost—roughly $35,000, according to officials. That gives the Air Force a way to shoot down drones without expending costly air-to-air missiles.

For comparison:

• Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles (AMRAAMs): roughly $1 million each
• AIM-9 missiles: hundreds of thousands of dollars depending on the variant
• AIM-9X (most capable model): around $500,000

APKWS was first tested in an air-to-air role in 2019. The Air Force did not pursue the idea heavily until a few years later, before fielding it in combat in 2024.

"We were on the wrong side of the cost curve in our munitions employment," former Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Allvin said in an interview with Air & Space Forces Magazine.

"The great thing about it is that there wasn't a formal requirement set out for this. This was sort of organic. People started figuring it out without it being a big program of record," Allvin added. "Good thing they did."

Combat Proven

APKWS scored its first combat air-to-air kill in the fall of 2024 in the Middle East, when an F-16 from the 510th Fighter Squadron at Aviano Air Base, Italy, fired a rocket, current and former officials told Air & Space Forces Magazine.

When the 480th Fighter Squadron from Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany, deployed to the Middle East soon after, they scored dozens more aerial kills—108 in total using all weapons during their deployment.

By the spring of 2025, the Air Force began flight testing APKWS on F-15E Strike Eagles and fielded the capability in the Middle East within roughly a week. Around the same time, U.S. Air Forces in Europe also fielded the system for its air-to-air training. The system has also been used on A-10s to shoot down drones.

Origins and Expansion

The APKWS has its origins in a decades-old air-to-ground system. It was adapted to serve in an air-to-air role when Air Forces Central, commanded by then-Lt. Gen. Alexus G. Grynkewich, began looking for an alternative to using costly air-to-air missiles against drones. CENTCOM and the Air Force supported the effort.

The framework agreement is intended as a signal of what the Pentagon plans to buy, subject to specific contracts and the congressional funding needs for those deals.

BAE says the new agreement will help expand production at its facilities in Hudson, N.H., and Austin, Texas.

"This agreement highlights the importance of sustained investment in critical munitions to strengthen readiness and equip forces for evolving operational needs," BAE Systems president and CEO Tom Arseneault said in a statement.

"By securing multiyear demand, this agreement keeps production lines running at capacity, provides our forces with interceptor inventory, and flips the cost calculus in the taxpayer's favor," Michael Duffey, undersecretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment, said in a statement.

Broader Applications

APKWS can also be used in a ground-to-air role. It can be fitted to systems such as:

• Sierra Nevada Corporation's BRAWLR, which is deployed overseas by the U.S. military
• L3Harris' VAMPIRE, which is used by Ukraine

It has been fitted to other nations' fighter platforms and has been tested on the MQ-9 Reaper as well.

"This drone problem is not going away," retired Lt. Gen. Derek C. France, who led Air Forces Central from April 2024 to August 2026, said in a recent interview with Air & Space Forces Magazine. "It's accelerating in tactics, speed, advancements, and the numbers. That's the direction that we're going."

A U.S. Air Force F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft takes off from a base in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility Sept. 28, 2026. Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System rockets are fitted under one of the aircraft's wings. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Noah J. Tancer)

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