US Air Force looks to launch cheap missiles from cargo aircraft

The U.S. Air Force wants inexpensive, long-range missiles that can be launched in mass volleys by cargo aircraft.

According to a recent Request for Information, Beyond Adversary’s Reach, Family of Affordable Mass Missiles, or FAMM-BAR, would be a common air-to-surface missile carried in pallets aboard cargo aircraft. The service envisions producing 1,000 to 2,000 missiles per year for five years.

The goal is to “streamline the battlespace by developing a single, common, air-to surface munition that is affordable, adaptable, and possesses significant standoff range,” the Air Force’s RIF reads.

The initial goal is an anti-ship missile with a range of at least 1,000 nautical missiles, a speed of at least 533 miles per hour and mid-course navigation. The RFI describes the target set as “slow moving maritime.”

However, FAMM-BAR seems to be exploring the possibility of a joint missile that can be launched from multiple types of platforms. The RFI mentions “long-range employment on fighter and additional aircraft” using lugged munitions, or weapons attached to an aircraft’s wings or inside a bomb bay.

It also asks contractors whether their design is suitable for “surface to surface by Army and Navy systems.”

Respondents to the RIF are asked to detail how they will “manage the aerodynamic and physical constraints for a weapon that must be both internally/externally lug mounted by fighters/bombers and deployed from a cargo pallet or for maritime operations on USN ships.” Other considerations include resistance to GPS jamming.

However, “this is not a request to change your current design to satisfy other services and strictly for information gathering nor is it a demand signal from the other services,” the RFI noted.

FAMM-BAR is a longer-range addition to the Air Force’s palletized FAMM-P and lugged FAMM-L programs, which will have ranges of 250 to 500 nautical miles. The Air Force recently tested FAMM-L for compatibility with the F-16.

The Air Force’s fiscal 2027 budget asks for $300 million in mandatory and $55 million in discretionary funds to purchase 1,000 FAMM missiles.

“Future increments will be defined based upon user demand and are likely to include a Beyond Line-of-Sight (BLOS), Extended Range (ER), Long-Range Kill Chain (LRKC) communications, different payloads, sub-systems or employment options, etc.,” the budget request noted.

The RIF comes as the U.S. has been expending missiles in the Iran War at a prodigious — and ultimately unsustainable — rate.

Experts worry that the Middle East conflict is depleting American missile stockpiles so rapidly that the U.S. will lack sufficient munitions to defend Taiwan from Chinese invasion.