The US Army has broken a supply-chain monopoly on the Hydra-70 rocket, a munition fired more than 1.7 million times over the past decade, that had stood since 1996. General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems (GD-OTS) had been the sole manufacturer of the Hydra-70 since 1996, delivering more than 5 million rockets, and remained the only bidder on the most recent $3.4 billion contract awarded in 2020.
Now, the Army has brought in four new industry partners through Other Transaction Authority (OTA) agreements to secure this critical munition, for which annual demand has reached 200,000 units.
Four New Players in Hydra-70 Rocket Procurement
The Aviation Rockets and Small Guided Munitions (ARSGM) Product Office, working through the One Nation Innovation (ONI) platform, authorized Firehawk, iRocket, Nammo Perry, and Albers. This innovative model allows the Army to work with multiple industry partners simultaneously, tapping into private-sector expertise to modernize the government-owned Hydra-70 Technical Data Package (TDP).
Under the agreements, the contractors will deliver 24 prototype Hydra-70 M151 high-explosive rockets along with an updated TDP within 18 months. The move, aimed at improving manufacturability and modernizing the munition’s specifications, is designed to create a competitive pricing environment and raise supply assurance to a new level.
The strategy delivers a critical boost to production capacity across the defense industrial base, ensuring a rapid response to potential mission needs and uninterrupted combat readiness. Following successful demonstration of the prototypes, the program is expected to expand to cover other variants in the Hydra-70 rocket family.
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Source: C4Defence– Army.mil
