The Shadow Budget of War: How America's Missile Deals Are Fueling a New Era of Defense Spending The Pentagon's recent $58.
6 billion contract with Lockheed Martin for Patriot missiles marks one of the largest air defense procurement deals in history, driven by growing concerns over shrinking US missile inventories and the need to replenish stockpiles depleted by ongoing conflicts.
The deal converts a previous one year contract into a seven year framework, ensuring long term production of Patriot Advanced Capability 3 Missile Segment Enhancement (PAC 3 MSE) interceptors.