Long-range precision fires and stand-off strike weapons are fundamental to America’s ability to deter our adversaries, but existing solutions are too expensive, too exquisite, and too hard to produce at scale. Anduril is prepared to deliver.
On May 13, 2026, the U.S. Department of War announced a framework agreement with Anduril Industries to rapidly scale production of a new, affordable and mass-producible cruise missile solution to the long-range precision fires and stand-off strike problem: surface-launched Barracuda-500M (SLB-500M).
The framework agreement signed between Anduril and the Office of the Undersecretary of War for Research and Engineering (OSW(R&E)) covers the procurement and delivery of a minimum of 3,000 all-up SLB-500M systems to the Army’s Program Acquisition Executive FIRES (PAE FIRES) across three years as part of the Ground-Launched Low-Cost Containerized Munition program, with ability to increase that number based on evolving DoW requirements.
Under the agreement, Anduril will scale production to deliver a minimum of 1,000 all-up rounds per year, with the first tranche of deliveries taking place in the first half of 2027, just one year after contract award. Anduril will also deliver the associated containerized launch system for SLB-500M, starting with more than 60 launchers in 2027.
The agreement represents a departure from the traditional approach to munitions procurement that has resulted in buys of critical munitions that peak in the low hundreds of rounds per year. Together, OSW(R&E) and Anduril have established a new precedent for munitions procurement that emphasizes rapid, large-scale production of affordable munitions, forging a new path to rebuild America’s munitions inventories that is directly aligned with the Department’s focus on acquisition transformation.
By establishing a framework for large-scale procurement of SLB-500M across several years, the Department has energized the non-traditional industrial base, capitalizing on Anduril’s complementary investments to dramatically increase production capacity for critical munitions.
A new approach to long-range precision fires SLB-500M is a highly-capable and affordable munition that enables high-volume, coordinated, long range strikes. Equipped with a 100 pound munition payload and offering 500+ nautical miles of range, SLB-500M is a stand-off strike capability that is designed to be effective against a wide range of land and maritime targets.
Optionally, integrating the system with Anduril’s Lattice for Mission Autonomy software makes it capable of novel autonomous and collaborative behaviors that increase survivability and effectiveness against large target sets in contested environments.
We designed SLB-500M to offer disruptive capability without adding additional infrastructure to support large-scale fielding. Built in a standard 20-foot ISO container, the containerized launcher can be loaded with up to 16 all-up rounds at a munition storage facility, then transported and emplaced at the desired launch point.
When ready, an operator will use Lattice or other existing fire control software to select targets, pick the right combination of SLB-500M munitions based on those targets, and initiate launch. The missile is also designed to be deployable independent of the 20-foot container to support a variety of operational scenarios.
Production-ready The entire Barracuda family of systems was designed from their first blueprints to be ready for hyper-scale production. Our SLB-500 variant is no different. Made up of 70% commodity components, with the remaining 30% de-risked by competing open-architecture designs among multiple vendors, Anduril designed SLB-500M to hedge against supply chain disruptions.
Similarly, SLB-500M’s simple design means that it can be assembled in just 30 hours with only ten common hand tools, ensuring that production can be rapidly scaled to meet urgent demand. Over the last year, Anduril has invested more than $40 million to build a dedicated 115,000+ square foot production facility in Southern California to meet short-term demand for the Barracuda family of systems.
That facility opened earlier this year and we have already begun producing Barracuda variants at that facility. Ultimately, production for SLB-500 and other Barracuda variants will shift to Arsenal-1 – Anduril’s nearly $1 billion, 5 million square foot hyper-scale production facility in Columbus, Ohio – to further scale production capacity and meet additional surges in demand. Producing the air vehicle is only half of the battle.
In parallel, Anduril and the Department of War have deployed significant capital to expand the solid rocket motor industrial base, ensuring that Anduril will be able to produce the boosters required to launch SLB-500M airborne.
To date, Anduril has deployed $75 million in private capital and $58 million in Defense Production Act (DPA) Title III funding to build and expand Anduril’s full-rate solid rocket motor production facility in Mississippi, establishing Anduril as the third U.S. supplier of solid rocket motors.
By combining SLB-500M’s highly producible design and commoditized supply chain with Anduril’s significant and ongoing investments to scale production capacity for Barracuda air vehicles and SRM boosters, we have the facilities and infrastructure to support ramping production to high single-digit thousands of Barracuda-500s by the end of this year.
SLB-500M is specifically designed to expand the United States’ long-range precision fires and stand-off strike capability. By augmenting existing critical munitions inventories with a more affordable, producible, and flexible option, Anduril is rebuilding America’s arsenal of munitions, ensuring that we have the capability required to deter our adversaries. We look forward to working with the Army to deliver surface-launched Barracuda-500M at scale.
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