The United States Navy has awarded Lockheed Martin Space a $1.36 billion contract modification to support missile and launch platform production for the Conventional Prompt Strike (CPS) hypersonic weapon program.
The March 31 award covers engineering development, systems integration, long-lead materials, testing, and specialized tooling required for continued production of the missile and its launch infrastructure. The contract is directly tied to the Navy’s push to transition CPS from test and integration work into operational fielding.
The timing is operationally relevant because the Navy is preparing to place its first shipborne hypersonic strike weapon into service. The Zumwalt class is being repurposed from its original naval gunfire role into a long-range precision strike platform built around CPS launch modules.
According to the contract notice, Lockheed Martin received a $1,356,115,974 contract modification under program number N00030-22-C-1025. The work includes program management, engineering, systems integration, testing, and support equipment for missile and launching platform production.
Work will continue through Sept. 30, 2032, with the majority taking place in Denver, Colorado (55%), followed by Sunnyvale, California (16%), Magna, Utah (8%), and several additional U.S. sites.
According to Lockheed Martin, CPS is a hypersonic boost-glide missile system designed to deliver long-range conventional strikes with reduced flight time and improved survivability against enemy defenses.
The missile uses a booster rocket to accelerate a glide body to hypersonic speed before separation. The glide vehicle then maneuvers at speeds above Mach 5, making interception far more difficult than against traditional cruise missiles or ballistic weapons following predictable trajectories.
The War Zone in 2025 has reported that USS Zumwalt has been fitted with four large hypersonic missile launch tubes installed in the forward section of the ship after removal of its Advanced Gun System. Each launch tube is 87 inches in diameter, and each can accommodate a triple-packed Advanced Payload Module canister, giving the destroyer a maximum load of 12 CPS missiles.
The slide from Capt. Clint Lawler’s presentation at the 2025 Surface Navy Association symposium. (TWZ pic)
Originally designed around two 155 mm Advanced Gun Systems, the Zumwalt class lost much of its intended strike role after the Navy canceled procurement of the Long-Range Land Attack Projectile due to its exceptionally high cost.
The installation of CPS launch modules gives the ship a new role as the Navy’s first operational hypersonic strike platform.
According to TWZ, the forward gun mount and associated below-deck components were removed in 2024, with installation of the new launch tubes completed later that year. The Navy’s current objective is to prepare USS Zumwalt for live-fire testing and initial operational capability in 2026.
