Raytheon has secured a $523m contract from the US Army to modernise the State of Kuwait's Patriot air and missile defence systems.

Patriot is a long-range, high altitude, all-weather solution that counters threats from tactical ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, drones and advanced aircraft.

In a statement, Raytheon said that the contract covers Configuration 3+ upgrades to Patriot, which are expected to provide Kuwaiti air defence systems with improved friend or foe identification and radar capabilities.

"Kuwait and other members of the 13-nation strong Patriot Partnership continue to invest in the system and trust Patriot to defend their citizens and militaries."

The company will modernise six Patriot fire units for Kuwait under the contract.

Raytheon Integrated Air and Missile Defense vice-president Ralph Acaba said: "Kuwait and other members of the 13-nation strong Patriot Partnership continue to invest in the system and trust Patriot to defend their citizens and militaries.

"Patriot is the only system in the world that is combat-proven and designed to outpace the future threat through continuous evolution."

Scheduled for completion in March 2022, the work under the contract will be performed in the US, Norway, Italy, Greece, the UK and Canada.

To date, Patriot has been tested more than 2,500 times by the US Army under real-world conditions.

The system was recently upgraded with GaN-based AESA radar technology to increase detection range and power and enable 360° coverage, as well as common command and control functionality to allow seamless operation with other systems.