RTX: Raytheon Invests US$100m Boosting Defence Production

Raytheon, a subsidiary of RTX Corporation, is investing US$100m to expand its Portsmouth, Rhode Island, facility in the US. 

The investment is designed to boost production for radar technology and subcomponents for Patriot missile systems. 

Both the US and Europe are currently ramping up defence spend at an unprecedented rate. US President Donald Trump recently proposed an increase to the US defence budget to US$1.5tn for the year 2027.

US munitions stockpiles have been depleted as a result of the US and Israel instigated war on Iran and the war in Ukraine, it has been widely reported.

Boosting production in Rhode Island

RTX says expansion will accelerate Lower Tier Air and Missile Defense Sensor (LTAMDS) testing by increasing capacity and boost Patriot GEM-T subcomponent production to meet what it calls “growing global demand”. 

LTAMDS is a radar designed to defeat advanced threats, including hypersonic weapons. Patriot GEM-T is a missile designed to neutralise airborne threats including tactical ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and hostile aircraft.

Raytheon currently employs more than 850 people in Rhode Island. 

Tom Laliberty, President of Land & Air Defense Systems at Raytheon, says: "This investment strengthens our ability to deliver critical air and missile defence capabilities to customers around the world.

"Expanding in Portsmouth allows us to scale production, advance LTAMDS testing and ensure the US Army and our international partners receive these systems as quickly as possible."

Increased defence spending from Europe

NATO Deputy Secretary General, Radmila Shekerinska, said on July 7 at the NATO Summit Dialogues in Ankara: “In 2025 alone, European Allies and Canada increased defence investment by US$139bn. That’s an increase of almost 20% compared to the previous year. 

“And just one year into a 10-year project that is the Hague Defence Investment Plan.”

She explained that NATO countries deal with what it perceived as "reckless behaviour" from Russia as well as “volatility in the South”. She said: “Our stockpiles need to be replenished. And we need this to happen fast.

“We need industry to rapidly produce capabilities and keep up with the increased demand for weapons and equipment.

“No single ally is able to produce all of what we need to address the pressing challenges we face. We need this effort to be transatlantic.”

Reuters reported on July 7 that the US is planning a PAC-3 missile maintenance facility in Europe and that European states are in co-production talks with the US for AMRAAM missile production there. 

Lockheed Martin builds PAC-3 missiles for the Patriot air defence systems. The news site theorised that if implemented, ​both projects could free up ⁠capacity at Raytheon and Lockheed Martin factories in the US and enable the defence giants to ramp up production at home.

Meeting European and US demand

Patriot systems production is projected to grow at an unprecedented rate over the coming years in the US. 

According to the Department of War’s Fiscal Year (FY) 2027 Budget Program Acquisition Cost by Weapon System report, the US plans to increase spending on Patriot Advanced Capability from US$891.4m in FY 2025 to US$3.28bn in FY2027.

It also plans to increase PAC-3/Missile Segment Enhancement spending by over 15 times, from US$905.1m in FY 2025 to US$13.96bn in FY2027. 

Raytheon is currently under contract for multiple LTAMDS radars for the US Army and Poland. In April, Raytheon signed a contract for US$3.7bn to supply Patriot GEM-T interceptors for Ukraine.

Also in April, the Netherlands awarded RTX’s Raytheon a US$627m contract for Patriot air and missile defence equipment.

RTX boosts US production

The Centre for Strategic and International Studies noted in May 2026 that the 39 day bombing and air defence campaign against Iran had depleted inventories of key US munitions stockpiles. President Trump has recently invoked the Defence Production Act of 1950 to shore up US production. 

The announcement of Raytheon's Rhode Island investment comes eight months after the company broke ground on a US$53m expansion of its Radar Production Facility in Andover, Massachusetts. 

Collins Aerospace, also an RTX business, announced in May it is investing US$26.5m to expand its Largo, Florida facility to accelerate the production of its commercial aviation radars and multi-domain security solutions for defence customers.