The Pentagon signed framework agreements July 15 with three defense companies to mass-produce thousands of low-cost cruise missiles for the U.S. Air Force, advancing a plan to buy nearly 28,000 weapons at a projected total of approximately $12.6 billion over five years.
The agreements fall under the Air Force’s Family of Affordable Mass Missiles (FAMM) program, with deals going to Anduril Industries for the Barracuda-500, CoAspire for its Rapidly Adaptable Affordable Cruise Missile (RAACM), and Zone 5 Technologies for the Rusty Dagger.
Anduril will deliver thousands of air-launched cruise missiles per year under a new 7-year agreement with the @DeptofWar.
This framework establishes a clear pathway to move the pallet-and lug-launched Barracuda-500M from development and prototyping into large-scale production.… https://t.co/H1pa4lW1jE pic.twitter.com/TLyplb9TTt
— Anduril Industries (@anduriltech) July 15, 2026
The Pentagon said the deals are a direct result of its Acquisition Transformation Strategy, designed to give industry stable demand signals and sustain a consistent production pipeline.
One detail in the FAMM award that has drawn little attention is that one of the three selected missiles has already been used in combat. Zone 5 confirmed in June 2026 that the Rusty Dagger is being supplied to Ukraine and cleared for use on four aircraft types.
Norway’s Kongsberg Defense, which completed a majority acquisition of Zone 5 in June, now holds a stake in the program.
The Barracuda-500, designated AGM-189A by the Air Force, has a reported range exceeding 500 nautical miles and a target unit cost between $200,000 and $216,000, a fraction of the price of established precision standoff munitions
CoAspire’s RAACM is built using additive manufacturing, or 3D printing, eliminating tooling requirements during assembly and reducing production labor.
The volume-first approach follows repeated concerns about munition stockpile depletion exposed during operations in the Middle East. Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Kenneth Wilsbach told the Senate Appropriations defense subcommittee last month that FAMM munitions are “on track to start production” this fall.
Aviation Week reported the Pentagon will seek seven-year procurement authority to lock in the framework agreements as binding contracts.
