TEWKSBURY, Mass., April 26, 2007 /PRNewswire/ -- Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTN) has been awarded a $144 million contract modification by the U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command to provide engineering services for the Patriot Air and Missile Defense program.

This award represents the third of four annual options to the base contract awarded in fiscal year 2004. The contract embodies the U.S. Army's Air and Missile Defense visionary commitment for a cost-effective approach to systems enhancements and capabilities. Raytheon Integrated Defense Systems (IDS), prime contractor for Patriot, manages the contract.

"Patriot engineering services provide both the U.S. Army and its international partners with revolutionary improvements to the Patriot system," said Pete Franklin, vice president for National and Theater Security Programs at Raytheon IDS. "These improvements enhance performance to counter and stay ahead of emerging threats, improve operational availability, and lower life- cycle cost. The result is a highly lethal, capable and reliable system to serve and protect the warfighter today and far into the future."

Patriot engineering services are an international cooperative effort in which foreign partners fund and benefit from systems improvements. International partners include Germany, The Netherlands, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Japan, Israel, Kuwait, Taiwan, Greece, and Spain.

The Patriot system remains the pre-eminent theater air and missile defense system and the nation's only deployed, land-based, short-to-medium range ballistic missile defense capability. To maintain combat effectiveness, the Patriot system's growth roadmap leads the U.S. Army's Air and Missile Defense transformation in becoming part of an integrated network of sensors, fire control, and command and intelligence under a composite battalion providing a layered system of protection and prosecution.

Work will be performed primarily at Raytheon IDS headquarters in Tewksbury, Mass.; the Integrated Air Defense Center in Andover, Mass.; the Warfighter Protection Center in Huntsville, Ala.; and the Mission Capability Verification Center at White Sands Missile Range, N.M.

Integrated Defense Systems is Raytheon's leader in Joint Battlespace Integration providing affordable, integrated solutions to a broad international and domestic customer base, including the U.S. Missile Defense Agency, U.S. Armed Forces and the Department of Homeland Security.

Raytheon Company, with 2006 sales of $20.3 billion, is a technology leader specializing in defense, homeland security and other government markets throughout the world. With a history of innovation spanning 85 years, Raytheon provides state-of-the-art electronics, mission systems integration and other capabilities in the areas of sensing; effects; and command, control, communications and intelligence systems, as well as a broad range of mission support services. With headquarters in Waltham, Mass., Raytheon employs 73,000 people worldwide.

  Contact:
  Guy Shields
  978.858.5246

SOURCE: Raytheon Company

CONTACT: Guy Shields of Raytheon Company, +1-978-858-5246

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