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Norway Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace
NASAMS
A short-to-medium-range, networked surface-to-air missile system co-developed by Kongsberg and Raytheon, built around the AMRAAM missile family fired from ground launchers. It protects the airspace over Washington, D.C. and has been a priority security-assistance package delivered to Ukraine.
In service since 1998 · 12 operator countries
Compiled from public sources ·primary reference ↗ ·last verified 2026-07-01
25
km range
15,000
m altitude
72
targets
120
km radar
💲 ≈ $200,000,000 — Approximate cost per fire unit battery
Procurement snapshot
Availability & export
National export licensing
Subject to Norway export-control approval; verify eligibility with the manufacturer.
Channel: Direct commercial / G2G
Fielded & proven
Established · 12 operators
In service since 1998. Status: active.
Lifecycle cost (est.)
$500M – $700M
Acquisition is only ~30% of lifecycle cost — operating & support dominate over ~25 yrs. Rough 2.5–3.5× the unit price.
Interoperability
Derived guidance from public data — export regime by country of origin, lifecycle from the GAO ~30% acquisition rule. Verify eligibility, pricing and offsets with the manufacturer and your acquisition authority.
Full specifications
Performance
Speed, range, altitude and engagement capability.
- Max speed (Mach)
Maximum speed as a multiple of the speed of sound. Mach 2+ is typical for air-superiority fighters.
- 4 Mach Stronger than 50% of air-defense systems
- Engagement range
Maximum distance at which an air-defense system can intercept targets. Higher covers more airspace.
- 25 km Stronger than 32% of air-defense systems
- Engagement altitude
Maximum target altitude the system can reach.
- 15,000 m Stronger than 35% of air-defense systems
- Simultaneous targets
Number of targets the system can engage at once. Higher resists saturation attacks.
- 72 Top 1% of air-defense systems
Firepower
Armament, payload and guidance.
- Main armament
Primary weapon: main gun, cannon or missile type.
- AIM-120 AMRAAM (surface-launched, AMRAAM-ER variant)
- Warhead
Warhead mass. Heavier generally means larger effect radius, at the cost of range.
- 18 kg Stronger than 41% of air-defense systems
- Warhead type
Blast-fragmentation, shaped charge (HEAT), penetrator, thermobaric or nuclear-capable.
- Blast-fragmentation
- Guidance
How the weapon finds its target: inertial, GPS/GLONASS, active/semi-active radar, infrared, laser, TV, wire.
- Active radar homing, Inertial + datalink midcourse
Sensors & avionics
Radar, sensor suite and datalinks.
- Radar
Primary radar. AESA (active electronically scanned array) is the current state of the art.
- AN/MPQ-64 Sentinel radar
- Radar range
Published detection range against a typical fighter-sized target. Higher sees first.
- 120 km Stronger than 42% of air-defense systems
- Datalink
Network connectivity: Link 16, MADL, national datalinks. Enables cooperative engagement.
- Link 16, FDC network
Program
Cost, production scale and operators.
- Unit cost
Approximate flyaway/unit cost where public. Defense pricing varies hugely by contract, offsets and configuration. Lower is cheaper.
- $200,000,000 Stronger than 46% of air-defense systems
- Operator countries
Number of countries operating the system. More operators means broader support ecosystem.
- 12 Stronger than 89% of air-defense systems
Specifications compiled from public Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace and reference sources ↗. Published defense figures are approximations — treat comparisons as directional. Last verified 2026-07-01.
Compare with rivals
See how it stacks up
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What is the engagement range of the Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace NASAMS? +
The Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace NASAMS has a maximum engagement range of 25 km.
What is the main armament of the Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace NASAMS? +
The Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace NASAMS's primary weapon is the AIM-120 AMRAAM (surface-launched, AMRAAM-ER variant).
What is the Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace NASAMS used for? +
The Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace NASAMS is a air defense system typically used for air defense.
How many countries operate the Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace NASAMS? +
The Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace NASAMS is operated by 12 countries.
How much does the Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace NASAMS cost? +
The Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace NASAMS has an approximate unit cost of 200,000,000 USD. Defense pricing varies by contract, offsets and configuration — treat this as directional.
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