PATUXENT RIVER / TUCSON — Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) has issued a procurement notice announcing its intent to award a sole-source Low-Rate Initial Production (LRIP) contract to Raytheon (RTX) for the Joint Multiple Effects Warhead System (JMEWS). The warhead integration will produce the Tomahawk Block Vb variant, providing naval surface forces and submarine fleets with hardened bunker-busting and multi-effect land-attack capabilities.
The sole-source determination transitions the JMEWS program out of its Engineering and Manufacturing Development (EMD) phase—supported by a prior $90.4 million contract—into operational manufacturing. The Tomahawk Block Vb is part of the Navy’s broader Block V recertification program, which overhauls existing Block IV missiles with modernized navigation, anti-jam communications, and a 15-year service life extension.
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS: TOMAHAWK BLOCK Vb (RGM/UGM-109E) & JMEWS 
* System Classification: Sub-surface / Surface-Launched Long-Range Precision Strike Cruise Missile
* Developer & Primary Contractor: Raytheon (RTX)
* Program Status: Transitioning from EMD to Low-Rate Initial Production (LRIP); Initial Operational Capability (IOC) target set for 2027
* Dimensions & Mass Profile:
* Length: 5.56 m (18.2 ft) / 6.25 m (20.5 ft) with solid-fuel booster
* Diameter: 0.52 m (20.5 in) | Wingspan: 2.67 m (8.7 ft)
* Overall Weight: ~1,500 kg (3,330 lbs) with rocket motor
* Propulsion & Dynamic Metrics:
* Cruise Engine: Williams International F415 turbofan engine
* Operational Speed: Subsonic (Mach 0.74 / ~880 km/h)
* Operational Range: >1,600 km (>1,000 miles / >864 nautical miles)
* Ordnance Architecture & Lethality:
* Warhead System: Joint Multiple Effects Warhead System (JMEWS)
* Warhead Mechanism: Advanced two-stage warhead combining a heavy penetrator core with a multi-mode blast-fragmentation case
* Target Sets: Hardened subterranean bunkers, reinforced concrete command facilities, surface-to-air missile sites, and broad area targets
* Guidance, Navigation & Survivability:
* Sensor Suite: Anti-jam GPS, inertial navigation (INS), Digital Scene Matching Area Correlation (DSMAC), and Terrain Contour Matching (TERCOM)
* In-Flight Communications: Two-way Satellite Data Link enabling target re-targeting, battle damage assessment (BDA), and loitering flight profiles
* Launch Platforms:
* Naval Surface Combatants: Mk 41 Vertical Launch System (VLS) on Arleigh Burke-class destroyers & Ticonderoga-class cruisers
* Submarine Fleet: Mk 45 VLS tubes and 533mm torpedo tubes on Virginia-class, Los Angeles-class, and Ohio-class (SSGN) submarines
