Navy Sees Strain on Munitions Supply After Red Sea Operations; Officials Seek Cheaper Counter‑UAS Options
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Summary
Navy leaders told the House Appropriations subcommittee that high expenditure of missiles in the Red Sea and other operations has strained the munitions industrial base, and described steps to increase production of key weapons while experimenting with lower‑cost defeat mechanisms for drones and missiles.
Navy leaders told the House Appropriations subcommittee that sustained operations in the Red Sea have increased ordnance demand and highlighted gaps in the munitions industrial base.
Admiral John Kilby said the Navy is investing to increase production of precision long‑range munitions used against near‑peer threats, naming Tomahawk, LRASM, SM‑6 and heavyweight torpedoes among items it needs to ramp up. "We need to increase production on" those munitions, Kilby said.
Kilby described specific production moves: the service is increasing SM‑6 production toward 300 rounds per year and has restarted the Mark 48 torpedo production line with a stepped increase planned (the witnesses described an initial ramp to deliver 10 per month). Kilby also told lawmakers the Navy is reopening lines and looking to alternative vendors and suppliers where possible.
Lawmakers and witnesses said the nearly constant missile and drone engagements in the Red Sea are consuming expensive missiles at a rate that is not sustainable for a protracted fight. Committee members pressed the Navy to pursue cheaper, scalable defenses for counter‑UAS and low‑cost attack profiles. Kilby and Phelan described experiments to put lower‑cost defeat systems on ships — including high‑power microwave, high‑velocity projectiles and smaller interceptors such as the Coyote system — and to field directed energy weapons where feasible.
Why it matters: High expenditure rates for precision munitions during sustained operations can deplete inventories the Navy expects to use in a major conflict; ramping domestic production and fielding cheaper defensive options are central to maintaining sustained combat operations.
Navy officials said they are seeking to increase domestic production rates, broaden vendor bases and field lower‑cost defensive systems rapidly; they committed to continued updates to the committee on production rates and procurements.
