Lockheed Martin unveiled the PAC-3 Edge, its next-generation Patriot interceptor, on Oct. 9, 2026, saying the missile will fly further, reach higher altitudes and engage more capable targets than the current PAC-3 MSE. The company says it is one of two firms selected to advance in the U.S. Army’s Future Interceptor program, though it did not name the other competitor and the Army did not respond to requests for comment.
The PAC-3 Edge is designed to counter advanced threats including hypersonic missiles, according to Lockheed. Tim Cahill, president of Lockheed’s missiles and fire control unit, said the missile will have a longer range, higher altitude capability, greater seeker sensitivity and improved maneuverability compared with the PAC-3 MSE.
Lockheed plans to invest hundreds of millions of dollars of its own money in the missile, with $50 million to $100 million already spent, Cahill said. The company is developing a new seeker in-house, with about $800 million planned for that effort and several hundred million dollars invested so far. The seeker was designed by Lockheed’s Strigo Product Center, which the company says it funded with $250 million of its own money.
The missile will use a three-pulse solid rocket motor developed with Northrop Grumman, providing greater range and altitude than the legacy PAC-3 missile. It will also feature upgraded flight controls and a greater number of attitude control motors for improved agility, Lockheed said.
Lockheed intends to begin testing the PAC-3 Edge in 2027, with initial deployment targeted for 2031. The missile will be built on Lockheed’s existing PAC-3 production line in Camden, Arkansas, which the company is expanding under a seven-year framework agreement with the Pentagon to triple interceptor production. The company is also building a new production facility with robotics and automation, and plans to move PAC-3 production there once complete.
Cahill said the cost of the PAC-3 Edge will be about the same as the PAC-3 MSE, and at full production the annual rate would be about 2,000 units, comparable with the PAC-3 MSE. In January, Lockheed signed a framework agreement with the Pentagon to increase annual PAC-3 production capacity to 2,000 units from about 600.
The Army previously canceled its Lower-Tier Future Interceptor program in 2024, but revived the effort as the Future Interceptor program. Lockheed also announced the PAC-3 ACE, a lower-cost version of the MSE, in July.
Lockheed says the PAC-3 Edge will sit between the PAC-3 MSE and the THAAD system in the Army’s layered missile defense, and is meant to counter aircraft, missiles and hypersonic weapons at higher altitudes and longer ranges than current Patriot interceptors.
Sources: Breaking Defense · Defense News