The US Army has initiated a competitive effort to develop PrSM Increment 4, a long-range precision strike weapon with a planned reach of 1,000 kilometers or more. Five companies—Anduril, Castelion, Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control, Mach Industries, and RTX—have received OTA agreements to develop prototypes compatible with the M142 HIMARS launcher. The future missile is expected to engage moving ships and relocatable land targets at distances at least twice that of the current PrSM. Prototype work is scheduled to lead to an initial competitive evaluation and down-selection in fiscal 2027, followed by a final fly-off involving selected competitors in fiscal 2028. The effort builds on ongoing PrSM development, including a $1.21 billion Lockheed Martin contract for Increment 2 Early Operational Capability awarded in September. While Increment 1 primarily focused on land targets, Increment 2 adds the ability to attack maritime and relocatable land targets at ranges reaching 500 km. It also introduces a multimode seeker for detecting and tracking moving targets. Increment 4 will use that seeker technology while adding a much longer-range propulsion configuration. L3Harris is providing ramjet propulsion for the Lockheed Martin-associated prototype. The system uses an initial rocket boost followed by ramjet-powered flight using atmospheric oxygen, reducing the need for an onboard oxidizer. The Army also wants the weapon to remain effective in GPS-denied environments and to have characteristics that make interception more difficult. The programme is being prioritized for the Indo-Pacific, where long-range precision attacks against land and maritime targets are considered particularly important.
