Kongsberg press release
Today, Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace AS (KONGSBERG) signed two contracts, valued at MNOK 1,426, with the Norwegian Defence Materiel Agency (FMA). KONGSBERG will deliver a new batch of Naval Strike Missile (NSM) to the Norwegian Navy’s frigates and corvettes. The existing inventory of missiles will go through a series of maintenance actions to extend their operational timeline and continue providing state of the art defence capabilities for the Navy.
“The triangular collaboration between KONGSBERG, the Norwegian Armed Forces and the Norwegian Defence Research Establishment (FFI) is the key to our ability to develop such advanced and complex systems. We are also very proud to sign a maintenance agreement that will extend the missile’s shelf life, ensuring that the Navy will remain operational with this important capability. Contracts such as this support KONGSBERG’s and FMA’s sustainability goals, and helps to secure further employment, not only for our employees, but also for our national subcontractors. We cannot produce nor deliver such advanced and state-of-the-art products alone,”
Øyvind Kolset, Executive Vice President of Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace.
The Naval Strike Missile is a fifth-generation missile with a low radar signature for use in sea-to-sea or sea-to-land defence. The missile, with its superior performance, can go up against well-defended targets with the ability to penetrate the most advanced air defence.
NSM is set up with integrated sensors to locate exact targets to engage, and will self-destruct if it is unable to locate its intended target – a build-in safety mechanism avoiding collateral damage.
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Naval News comments:
NSM has an operational range of 185 Km (100 nautical miles) and a high subsonic speed. It uses Inertial, GPS and terrain-reference navigation and imaging infrared homing (with a target database aboard the missile).
The NSM is a fifth generation anti-sip missile, produced by Kongsberg and managed in the U.S. by Raytheon. NSM reached Initial Operational Capability on the new Norwegian Fridtjof Nansen-class frigates and the Norwegian Skjold-class corvettes in 2012. It is also fielded by the Polish Navy (coastal defense batteries) and has been selected by the navies of Malaysia and Germany. NSM was also selected in 2018 as the winner of the U.S. Navy Over-The-Horizon Weapon System (OTH WS) competition and by the USMC in 2019. Its U.S. Navy designation is RGM-184A NSM Block 1. The USMC selection of Naval Strike Missiles from Raytheon was first announced in May 2019. The Navy/Marine Corps Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) is set to become operational in 2023.
