The U.S. Missile Defense Agency (MDA) plans to double the missile production rate for the Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) and Aegis ballistic missile defense systems between 2010 and 2015, according to the director of the agency.

Air Force Lt. Gen. Henry "Trey" Obering III, who is set to retire this fall, stressed to reporters after testifying at a House Armed Services strategic forces subcommittee hearing April 17 that a final decision would be made under the fiscal 2010 budget-building process, including by his successor.

But the move comes in response to recent lobbying of Pentagon and congressional leaders to focus missile defense efforts on meeting the near-term needs of foreign-based U.S. combat forces (versus shielding the homeland from longer-term, intercontinental ballistic missile threats under the ground-based midcourse defense element). Already, three-quarters of the $9.3 billion FY '09 budget request for MDA goes toward near-term efforts like THAAD and Aegis BMD, according to defense officials.

That budget, which also outlines Bush administration plans through FY '13, calls for 133 Standard Missile-3s under Aegis BMD and 96 THAAD interceptors. Obering said new planning, which was spurred by Pentagon acquisition chief John Young recently, would double the production rate over the five-year defense budget plan starting in FY '10.

The 2007 Joint Capabilities Mix Study II, recently approved by DOD's Joint Requirements Oversight Council, concluded that combatant commanders required at least twice as many SM-3 and THAAD interceptors as currently planned.

Lockheed Martin makes THAAD missiles and runs the program with subcontractors including Raytheon. Lockheed also runs the Aegis BMD program, where Raytheon makes the SM-3s.

18 ships

For now, MDA is upgrading the Aegis BMD weapon system, and the Navy is upgrading the SM-2 Block IV missile, to deploy up to 100 interceptors for a near-term shootdown capability on 18 Aegis BMD ships beginning in 2009. Yet, last fall, the Navy's Aegis BMD program director suggested the military still may not have enough missiles to meet its needs (Aerospace DAILY, Nov. 29, 2007).

And for years, Democrats on Capitol Hill – where they took over in 2007 – have emphasized Aegis BMD, THAAD and Patriot Advanced Capability-3 systems over the contentious ground-based midcourse defense (GBMD) ballistic interceptors. "I continue to believe we should focus greater attention on countering short- and medium-range missile threats," strategic subcommittee Chair Ellen Tauscher (D-Calif.) reiterated in opening the hearing.

Meanwhile, MDA said it is "working closely" with the Army to begin developing and fielding two THAAD fire units by 2009 with the intent to deliver them by 2010 and 2011. The THAAD unit, designed to intercept targets both inside and outside the Earth's atmosphere, comprise 48 interceptors and associated radars and command systems.

Still, Aegis BMD, THAAD and GBMD elements all have encountered cost growth recently. And when the administration unveiled the FY '09 request in February, MDA had said it planned to delay deployment of the third and fourth THAAD fire units, supposedly for budgetary reasons. Defense officials have said since then they expect to be able to reverse the delay.