Other · Land
Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD)
Mobile missile-defense weapon system for terminal-phase ballistic missile interception.
- Milestones3
- Operators—
- Components—
- Programs—
- Capabilities—
- Inputs—
Timeline3
- MilestoneConfirmed
First THAAD battery activated
Activation is not treated as formal IOC or an operational deployment.
- FieldedConfirmed
THAAD deployed to defend Guam
Operational Guam deployment, not claimed to be the first THAAD fielding anywhere.
- MilestoneConfirmed
THAAD production contract announced
Lockheed Martin announced receipt of a $3.9 billion production contract for MDA and the UAE. This is the announcement date; the underlying award date is unspecified.
The latest 10 milestones. Solid entries are confirmed, outlined reported, dashed estimated or still to come; dotted italic entries are speculative. Dates show only the precision the sources give.
Cost to the Government
Missiles · Lockheed Martin / RTX
Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD)
Interceptor flyaway cost, battery count and MDA annual sustainment funding are presented as three different measures.
Flyaway / THAAD interceptor
$15.534M
FY2026 base request · Nominal USD; source budget basis
MD07 P-40. Quantity and flyaway rows refer to interceptors; other hardware and support raise the gross procurement cost. Not a complete battery price.
Missile Defense Agency · CSIS mirror ↗U.S. batteries in support scope
8
FY2026 budget · June 2025 · U.S. only; stated source scope
OP-5 supports eight THAAD batteries. This counts batteries, not missiles or launchers, and is a budget-era snapshot rather than a current readiness report.
Missile Defense Agency · CSIS mirror ↗Base-request interceptors
25
FY2026 · U.S. only; stated source scope
MD07 base procurement quantity; separate reconciliation funding is not included.
Missile Defense Agency · CSIS mirror ↗Annual RDT&E funding
$393M / yr
FY2025 · FY2025 budget book · Nominal USD; source budget basis
Missile Defense Programs · THAAD. Annual research, development, test and evaluation funding in the March 2024 budget presentation; FY2024 and FY2025 are request figures. Not a lifetime R&D total or actual expenditure.
DoD Comptroller ↗Cost & funding breakdown
Gross procurement / interceptor denominator
$20.925M
FY2026 base request · Nominal USD; source budget basis
Includes broader hardware and support; the per-round denominator does not turn this into a complete battery unit price.
Missile Defense Agency · CSIS mirror ↗Count batteries and interceptors independently
MDA reports the battery support scope separately from purchased interceptors. Its THAAD operations line covers missile-defense-unique items; Army common items and radar support require additional budgets. Dividing that line by eight would not produce full annual battery ownership cost.
Operations & sustainment
MDA THAAD program O&M request
$117.028M / yr
FY2026 · Nominal USD; source budget basis
OP-5 p29, missile-defense-unique sustainment. Army common-item operations and separately budgeted radar sustainment are outside this line. Not total ownership cost.
Missile Defense Agency · CSIS mirror ↗Cost over time · 9 observations
Each row retains its original scope and dollar basis. Changing quantities, service life and inflation can change the estimate without changing the price of building one unit.
| Observation | Measure | Amount | Dollar basis | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2024 · PB2026 | Flyaway / THAAD interceptor MD07 P-40. Quantity and flyaway rows refer to interceptors; other hardware and support raise the gross procurement cost. Not a complete battery price. | $12.336M | Nominal USD; source budget basis | Missile Defense Agency · CSIS mirror ↗ |
| FY2025 · PB2026 | Flyaway / THAAD interceptor MD07 P-40. Quantity and flyaway rows refer to interceptors; other hardware and support raise the gross procurement cost. Not a complete battery price. | $12.773M | Nominal USD; source budget basis | Missile Defense Agency · CSIS mirror ↗ |
| FY2026 base request | Flyaway / THAAD interceptor MD07 P-40. Quantity and flyaway rows refer to interceptors; other hardware and support raise the gross procurement cost. Not a complete battery price. | $15.534M | Nominal USD; source budget basis | Missile Defense Agency · CSIS mirror ↗ |
| FY2023 · FY2025 budget book | Annual RDT&E funding Missile Defense Programs · THAAD. Annual research, development, test and evaluation funding in the March 2024 budget presentation; FY2024 and FY2025 are request figures. Not a lifetime R&D total or actual expenditure. | $262.1M / yr | Nominal USD; source budget basis | DoD Comptroller ↗ |
| FY2024 · FY2025 budget book | Annual RDT&E funding Missile Defense Programs · THAAD. Annual research, development, test and evaluation funding in the March 2024 budget presentation; FY2024 and FY2025 are request figures. Not a lifetime R&D total or actual expenditure. | $267.9M / yr | Nominal USD; source budget basis | DoD Comptroller ↗ |
| FY2025 · FY2025 budget book | Annual RDT&E funding Missile Defense Programs · THAAD. Annual research, development, test and evaluation funding in the March 2024 budget presentation; FY2024 and FY2025 are request figures. Not a lifetime R&D total or actual expenditure. | $393M / yr | Nominal USD; source budget basis | DoD Comptroller ↗ |
| FY2024 · PB2026 | MDA THAAD program O&M FY2024 actuals, FY2025 enacted, FY2026 request. Missile-defense-unique program support only. | $88.938M / yr | Nominal USD; source budget basis | Missile Defense Agency · CSIS mirror ↗ |
| FY2025 · PB2026 | MDA THAAD program O&M FY2024 actuals, FY2025 enacted, FY2026 request. Missile-defense-unique program support only. | $90.802M / yr | Nominal USD; source budget basis | Missile Defense Agency · CSIS mirror ↗ |
| FY2026 · PB2026 | MDA THAAD program O&M FY2024 actuals, FY2025 enacted, FY2026 request. Missile-defense-unique program support only. | $117.028M / yr | Nominal USD; source budget basis | Missile Defense Agency · CSIS mirror ↗ |
Contracts & purchasing · 2 records
Award values, ceilings and purchase agreements have different meanings. These records are not added together as total spending.
2026-06-24 · Maximum undefinitized contract value
U.S. government → Lockheed Martin
$35B · quantity not established
Seven-year interceptor production UCA, up to $35B. Not a definitized unit price or money already spent.
Lockheed Martin ↗2025-02-06 · Development IDIQ ceiling
Missile Defense Agency → Lockheed Martin
$2.8B · quantity not established
Five-year development contract with two extension options, up to ten years. Ceiling includes options and is not the lifetime program R&D total.
Lockheed Martin ↗
Connected missiles & systems
Radar and missile defense system
AN/TPY-2 Radar →AN/TPY-2 radar supports THAAD; the radar budget is not an interceptor or battery unit price.
RTX / Raytheon ↗
International buyers
No international purchase documented in this review.
Coverage & open research
- Current U.S. inventory and complete annual operating-and-support costs require additional public evidence.
- Buyer records are selected examples, not a complete global order book.
- The displayed R&D reference is annual funding or a specified multi-year request window, not a verified lifetime total.
- Additional primary-source international purchase and delivery records remain to be reviewed.
- Total acquisition costConfirmed$9.91BThen-year $ · 751 units
MDA procurement line MD07 only, P-40 'Total' column: 751 interceptors, $9,905.657M gross weapon system cost (includes ground components in prior years). Excludes RDT&E and the Army THAAD line from FY2027.
Source - Unit cost (flyaway)Confirmed$12.5MThen-year $ · 55 units
MDA P-40 THAAD (MD07) flyaway unit cost per interceptor, FY 2026: $12.516M for 55 (FY2025 $12.559M; prior years avg $9.755M; program total column $10.189M). Interceptors only. MDA requests no THAAD procurement in FY2027.
Source - Unit cost (per round)Confirmed$12.0MThen-year $ · 27 units
FY 2027 Army request (THAAD procurement transferred from MDA to Army in FY2027), P-5 line 8046C20200: interceptor unit cost $11,983.259K for 27 interceptors.
Source
| Fiscal year | Appropriation | Request | Enacted | Qty | Budget line | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2027 | RDT&E | $1.05B | — | — | — | SourceConfirmed |
| FY2027 | Procurement | $11.44B | — | 857 | — | SourceConfirmed |
| FY2027 | Total | $12.49B | — | 857 | — | SourceConfirmed |
| FY2026 | RDT&E | $685M | $503M | — | — | SourceConfirmed |
| FY2026 | Procurement | $840M | $823M | 55 | — | SourceConfirmed |
| FY2026 | Total | $1.52B | $1.33B | 55 | — | SourceConfirmed |
| FY2025 | RDT&E | — | $311M | — | — | SourceConfirmed |
| FY2025 | Procurement | — | $247M | 12 | — | SourceConfirmed |
| FY2025 | Total | — | $558M | 12 | — | SourceConfirmed |
Unit costs and contract unit prices for this system, and budget figures for the programs that buy it. Each figure states its dollar basis and links its source; contract values are under Programs & awards.