TUCSON, Ariz., May 17, 2005 /PRNewswire/ -- Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTN) has been awarded a $45.2 million contract from the U.S. Navy for fiscal year 2005 Rolling Airframe Missile (RAM) production. (The contract was originally announced by the Department of Defense March 22.)

The RAM MK 31 Guided Missile Weapon System is co-developed and co-produced under a bilateral program agreement between the United States and German governments.

Under the contract Raytheon will deliver 70 launching canisters, 65 RAM Block 1/HAS (helicopter, aircraft, surface) Tactical Guided Missile Round Packs (GMRPS), 25 RAM Block 1/HAS Telemeter GMRPs, active optical target detectors and related spares. Work on the contract will be performed at Raytheon's Missile Systems business in Tucson, Ariz., and RAMSYS GmbH of Ottobrunn, Germany. This contract is the U.S. Navy's eighth production installment of the GMRP Block 1 configuration.

RAM is a supersonic, lightweight, quick-reaction, fire-and-forget missile system ideally suited to counter the modern anti-ship missile threat. It has been designed for use in a layered ship defense system. RAM Guided Missile Weapon Systems are aboard more than 60 ships in the navies of the United States, Germany, Greece and Korea.

Raytheon Company, with 2004 sales of $20.2 billion, is an industry leader in defense and government electronics, space, information technology, technical services, and business and special mission aircraft. With headquarters in Waltham, Mass., Raytheon employs 80,000 people worldwide.

   Contact:
   Sara Hammond
   520.794.7810

SOURCE: Raytheon Company

Web site: http://www.raytheon.com/