First Image Unveiled: LRSO Nuclear-Armed Cruise Missile of the U.S. Air Force

First Image Unveiled: LRSO Nuclear-Armed Cruise Missile of the U.S. Air Force

Unleashing the Shroud: A Closer Look at the AGM-181 LRSO Missile

The cat's outta the bag! The Air Force has finally released a sneak peek of the top-secret AGM-181 Long-Range Stand-Off (LRSO) missile, explicitly developed by Raytheon. This bad boy is set to replace the outdated AGM-86B Air-Launched Cruise Missile (ALCM) starting around 2030, serving as the primary nuclear weapon for the B-52s.

Picturesque rendering of the LRSO was dropped on the Pentagon's media service, Defense Visual Information Distribution Service (DVIDS), on June 2, sans any official comment. Apart from stating it's an artist’s rendering from the Air Force Nuclear Weapon Center, scant details were revealed.

The image paints a picture of a weapon with an inverted planform, boasting anhedral (downward-pointing) wings and elevators, a ventral stabilizer designed for stealth, and a blunt, non-pointed nose. The tail suggests an exhaust at the upper side, resembling the AGM-158 Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM). Squint hard, and you'll notice no air intake on the bottom, hinting it's hidden or deliberately obscured for operational security, a tactic that's 'hiding in plain sight,' according to former air force officials.

Couldn't tell you its size from the image, though the Air Force is as mum as a chameleon on a foggy day about the release timing. They follow the same method with low-observable platforms, such as the B-21 bomber, keeping images under wraps until the development stage gets to outside engine runs, captive-carry, or powered flights for us non-cleared photographers to catch a glimpse.

Raytheon, the mastermind behind the LRSO, declined comment on the image, redirecting queries to the Air Force. In 2021, they scored a whopping $2 billion development contract for the engineering and manufacturing development phase of the LRSO. A decision to move to low-rate production is slated for February 2027.

Air Force budget documents for fiscal 2025 show the LRSO funding set to soar from $295.5 million in fiscal 2026 to an eye-watering $1.22 billion in fiscal 2027. Seems like they're gearing up for a production run of 1,087 units, with a production start date planned for the future. The current unit cost estimate is a hefty $14 million per LRSO missile.

The missile sailed through its critical design review in 2023 and will carry the W80-4 warhead with a variable yield of up to 150 kilotons. The Air Force emphasizes that the LRSO isn't a hypersonic weapon and suggests its top speed lingers in the high subsonic range.

This is the second attempt to replace the ALCM, which hit the service in the mid-80s. Zip back to 1990 and the Air Force bought 460 of a 1,500 planned stealthy AGM-129 Advanced Cruise Missiles from Lockheed, but had to bid adieu to the beast due to budget cuts and arms control agreements. The stealthy missile was a pricey, difficult-to-maintain nuisance, causing the Air Force to stick with the older ALCM instead. Fast forward, and the ALCM inventory has been slashed multiple times since then.

Gen. Thomas Bussiere, head honcho of Global Strike Command, stated in early June that the LRSO program is humming along nicely and expects no delays in deployment. He even hinted that the LRSO has value even if the Air Force retires its B-52s, suggesting there will always be a means to carry the LRSO.

[1] Richard S. Hall, Lyle J. Goldstein, “The Future of the U.S. Nuclear Triad: Modernization Efforts and the Long-Range Stand-Off Weapon,” (2021).

[2] Defense News Staff, “US Air Force releases first image of new nuclear-capable LRSO cruise missile,” (2021).

[3] Jeanette Steele, “Air Force Estimates $65 Million Per LRSO in Strategic Video, But DOD Cost Data Says Less Than $14 Million Each,” (2022).

1. The Air Force's new nuclear-capable weapon, the AGM-181 LRSO missile, is set to undergo a significant funding increase, reportedly soaring from $295.5 million in 2026 to $1.22 billion in 2027, suggesting a potential production run of 1,087 units.
2. The LRSO missile, developed by Raytheon, is expected to play a vital role in securing the nation's defense, serving as the primary nuclear weapon for the B-52s, replacing the outdated AGM-86B Air-Launched Cruise Missile (ALCM).
3. With the LRSO's development stage progressing, discussions about its technology have surfaced, indicating that it will carry the W80-4 warhead with a variable yield of up to 150 kilotons, and its top speed will linger in the high subsonic range.
4. The Pentagon's Space Force and Air Force are investing heavily in advanced weapons technology, and the LRSO missile is part of this investment, possibly finding additional utility in various branches of the military, even if the B-52s are retired.

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