A JASSM cruise missile is deployed during a test launch. Photo by U.S. Air Force/Lockheed Martin

Sept. 11 (UPI) -- Lockheed Martin has received a $51 million contract for development of the Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile Extreme Range.

The contract, announced Monday by the Department of Defense, includes all-up round level systems, engineering, testing and integration services for the JASSM-XR hardware and firmware.


The JASSM-XR program will include a new missile control unit and necessary hardware and infrastructure to support JASSM-XR production, the Pentagon said.

Work on the contract will be performed in Orlando, Fla., and is expected to be completed by August 2023. Air Force fiscal 2017 and 2018 research and development funds in the amount of $4.9 million are being obligated at the time of award.

The JASSM is a long-range air-launched cruise missile with a stealthy radar-evading airframe. It uses an infrared seeker and GPS guidance to autonomously strike fixed targets at long ranges with a 1,000-pound penetrating blast warhead.

The standard model can be mounted on most Air Force and Navy fighters and bomber aircraft, while the JASSM-ER is currently deployed on the B1B Lancer heavy supersonic bomber. The ER version is being adapted to be used with other aircraft.

The XR, or Extreme Range version of the missile, is anticipated to have a range of over a thousand miles. It will be deployed by heavy bombers and some strike aircraft for stand-off strikes against hardened targets.