Patriot manufacturer cannot guarantee delivery dates for missiles to U.S. allies, - FT
Lockheed Martin cannot provide the United States’ allies with any guarantees regarding the delivery schedule for missiles for the Patriot air defense systems.
This was stated by Brian Dunn, vice president of strategy and business development for Lockheed Martin’s Missiles division, according to Censor.NET, citing the Financial Times.
Details
According to him, the company is working hard to ramp up production of PAC-3 interceptor missiles. At the same time, supply shortages have worsened significantly due to the war with Iran.
During his conversation with journalists, Dunn delivered a discouraging message to American allies, particularly Germany, Japan, Poland, the UAE, and Saudi Arabia, which have Patriot systems in service.
He explained that the additional production capacity "will obviously make it possible to meet the needs of many users more quickly," while noting that the company "has no control over how these missiles will be distributed."
"Obviously, there are a lot of statements coming out of the Pentagon right now... about how they plan to change the order of priority, reorganize who will receive the missiles first. ... We do not control the distribution of these missiles. We cannot tell anyone what place you will occupy on this (priority list)," he explained.
Paula Hartley, a top executive at Lockheed Martin’s missile division, said that during meetings with representatives of foreign governments, she senses growing skepticism toward American defense contractors.
"They are disappointed by occasional delays and product unavailability, and sometimes there is frustration with the government. I understand that frustration. We just keep working hard to make sure we can meet our commitments," she said.
