Missile crisis: The hard truths about America's military arsenal
In the early days of the war against Iran, the U.S. fired off thousands of long-range, precision-guided missiles. Now, with a depleted arsenal, the Pentagon seeks to replenish its stockpiles, an effort that will cost billions and take years.
On the production floor of Lockheed Martin's missile division in Camden, Arkansas, Tim Cahill, the head of the missile division, displayed the latest model of the Patriot air defense missile. Designed to destroy incoming ballistic missiles, the system uses a classic "bullet hitting a bullet" approach. Each Patriot missile costs around $4 million to produce, and the company currently manufactures 750 of them annually.
However, this production falls short of the estimated 1,500 missiles fired in the war against Iran. The total cost of munitions already used against Iran is estimated at $25 billion. Mark Cancian, of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, notes that the shortage of high-tech weapons has been a chronic issue, largely overlooked until the U.S. increased military aid to Ukraine following Russia's invasion in 2022.
By April 8, the U.S. had struck over 13,000 targets in Iran, depleting stockpiles significantly. While the Pentagon claims there are no munition shortages, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has urged the industry to boost production to a "wartime footing." Lockheed Martin aims to increase Patriot production from 750 a year to 2,000 by ramping up shifts and enhancing automation.
However, the company relies on a vast supply chain of 500 to 1,000 suppliers, creating potential bottlenecks. The rocket motors for the Patriot, made by L3Harris, are subject to time-consuming safety regulations, with the cure time for rocket fuel in the oven ranging from days to weeks. The company has nearly doubled production of these motors and is building a more automated plant, but it is still 16 months away from completion.
The call for speed, scale, volume, efficiency, and maximum urgency in rebuilding America's arsenal comes amid record defense budgets, which polls show a majority of Americans do not support.
Written by urgent.news from CBS News's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
