“U.S. procurements for the AARGM-ER program are planned to resume once the system has successfully completed all necessary testing and software updates,” a Navy spokesperson told TWZ. The statement made clear the service still wants the AGM-88G Advanced Anti‑Radiation Guided Missile‑Extended Range (AARGM‑ER) to reach Initial Operational Capability (IOC) in September 2026 even as it has announced a one‑year “strategic pause” in U.S. purchases for Fiscal Year 2027.
Navy spokesperson: procurement pause, IOC target, and backlog
The Navy’s published position is a two‑track approach: press for IOC this year while halting U.S. buys in FY27. The service told TWZ that, after validating software and testing, it intends “to ramp up production to clear a backlog of over 150 missiles,” with U.S. procurement resuming in FY28. The spokesperson said FY27 production will instead be allocated to Foreign Military Sales (FMS) to satisfy five signed international cases. The Navy did not name those foreign purchasers in its statement to TWZ.
Technical redesign and intended capabilities of the AGM‑88G AARGM‑ER
The AGM‑88G is a major redesign of the earlier AGM‑88E AARGM. The Navy and contractor materials describe a new body optimized for higher speed and range, a more powerful rocket motor, and a revised control actuation system. Inside, AARGM‑ER reuses the guidance and control systems from the AGM‑88E and therefore retains the predecessor’s multi‑mode guidance suite, including a GPS‑assisted inertial navigation system and a millimeter‑wave radar seeker.
Those guidance features make hostile emitters — especially air‑defense radars — the missile’s primary target set. The guidance package is intended to allow the weapon to locate targets even if emitters shut down. The AGM‑88E family also retains a secondary capability to strike specified coordinates on land or at sea.
The Navy plans to field AGM‑88G first on F/A‑18E/F Super Hornet fighters and EA‑18G Growler electronic‑warfare jets; both can already employ the AGM‑88E. AARGM‑ER is sized for internal carriage in F‑35A and F‑35C bays and is planned for external carriage on all three F‑35 variants as well as legacy F/A‑18C/D Hornets.
Testing history, failures, and schedule risk
The program’s schedule and performance have been troubled. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) reported in June 2025 that AARGM‑ER “experienced significant delays as a result of rocket motor, structural, and software problems discovered during testing,” and that contracting officials had to work with the prime contractor to investigate root causes and implement corrective actions, including changes to production processes. GAO also noted production delays tied to testing issues, supply‑chain challenges, and construction delays for a new production facility, which slowed completion of the first two production contracts by about one year.
The Pentagon’s Office of the Director of Test and Evaluation (DOT&E) said in March 2026 that in FY25 the program ran three integrated test weapon employment events using F/A‑18F aircraft at the China Lake Range. AARGM‑ER successfully completed one of the three events but “exhibited performance discrepancies” in the other two; one release was terminated by range safety. DOT&E reported no further weapons employment testing in FY25 pending required updates and warned the IOC schedule “could slip further to the first quarter of Fiscal Year 2027,” which begins October 1.
International partners, FMS allocations, and production choices
The Navy confirmed that FY27 production will be routed to FMS cases while U.S. buys pause. Italy is identified in public reporting as a full partner in AARGM‑ER development. The U.S. government has previously approved sales of the missile to Australia, Finland, and the Netherlands, and Norway has publicly announced an intention to purchase AARGM‑ERs. The Navy did not identify which five signed international cases will receive FY27 production in its TWZ statement.
How the Air Force, SiAW, and related concepts intersect with the pause
The Air Force is also slated to acquire weapons in the AARGM‑ER family. A subvariant with an “improved warhead/fuze” is intended to serve as a bridge to the Stand‑in Attack Weapon (SiAW), reportedly designated the AGM‑88J. The Air Force has requested additional SiAW funding in FY27 and previously targeted 2026 for SiAW IOC on the F‑35A. Disclosed SiAW flight testing to date involved carriage on F‑16 fighters, and the Air Force expects to employ SiAW against time‑sensitive or high‑value ground targets such as missile launchers, air‑and‑missile‑defense nodes, and electronic‑warfare systems. Separately, Northrop Grumman has been marketing a ground‑launched family member called the Advanced Reactive Strike Missile (AReS).
The Navy’s public posture is clear: it intends to press for AARGM‑ER IOC in September 2026 while freezing U.S. purchases for one fiscal year to allow testing and software corrective actions to finish. Whether the program can clear the remaining test and software milestones in time — and whether the IOC date holds or slips into FY27 as DOT&E warned — will determine whether the backlog of more than 150 missiles is reduced by ramped U.S. production in FY28 or remains largely allocated to international customers.
