United States
Australia
United Kingdom
Europe
New Zealand
Canada
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — Lockheed Martin has unveiled a new hypersonic glide body, the next generation glide body (NXGB), aimed at providing an affordable, rapidly producible and operationally relevant long-range strike option. The company says the system combines advanced performance, survivability and scalability to meet evolving national security needs.
NXGB emphasizes a manufacturing-first approach intended to reduce costs while delivering greater range and velocity than current designs. It is designed to launch from multiple platforms across multiple warfighting domains, a configuration the company says will expand operational flexibility in contested environments and reduce risk to U.S. forces.
“NXGB demonstrates our commitment to delivering next-generation deterrence that is not only effective, but affordable and producible at scale,” said Johnathon Caldwell, Lockheed Martin vice president and general manager of Strategic and Missile Defense Systems. “We designed this capability from the outset to provide greater value to our customers while delivering an operational advantage to the warfighter.”
The effort builds on more than six decades of missile development, incorporating proven technologies, engineering practices and lessons learned from fielded systems. “The future of deterrence belongs to solutions that combine innovative Modular Open Systems Approach and modern design methods with proven performance,” Caldwell said. “NXGB reflects a paradigm shift focusing on design for manufacturing at scale while implementing decades of lessons learned designing, producing and delivering mission-critical systems for the warfighter. That heritage allows us to move faster as well as reduce risk and cost while keeping exceptional performance.”
To support production, the company has invested in purpose-built manufacturing infrastructure and advanced production capabilities, and says supply chain partnerships will enable rapid scaling to deliver capability when and where needed.
The program has completed its Preliminary Design Review, confirming requirements for performance, producibility and affordability. A flight demonstration is planned for 2027 to validate performance.
