Raytheon is poised to book billions of dollars worth of orders for its Patriot air and missile defense system in the coming months, underscoring the resurgence of a weapon first developed to defend Europe against a possible Soviet attack.
Three decades later, the system has been upgraded multiple times and more than 200 fire units are in use in a dozen countries, with additional customers in talks to buy into a system that just a few years ago looked ready to wind down.
Raytheon called the system "a never-ending opportunity" after a major redesign as part of a $3.3 billion order from the United Arab Emirates in 2008 that has spawned multiple new orders and launched a new chapter in the program's history.
Raytheon builds Patriot and acts as the systems integrator for the PAC-3 missile, which is built by Lockheed Martin Corp.
Raytheon officials say they expect several large orders for Patriot systems in the second half of the year, including a deal for 11 fire units from Qatar. They also expect an order Kuwait and Turkey.
The Patriot system is already used by 12 countries - United States, Netherlands, Germany, Japan, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Taiwan, Greece, Spain, South Korea and UAE. Raytheon is in active talks to enlarge that group.
Poland is considering buying equipment from Germany, which Raytheon would then upgrade, and India has expressed an interest, as have Singapore and Malaysia.
reuters
