The United States and partner countries that ordered additional missiles for Patriot air defense systems after the conflict with Iran began will not receive them until late 2028, according to an analysis of US government documents by RIA Novosti.
A total of $7.13 billion has been allocated to replenish missile stocks under two active agreements with Lockheed Martin. The US Army funded $1.93 billion of the purchases, while the remaining amount came from foreign customers through the Foreign Military Sales program.
The Pentagon’s budget request for fiscal year 2027 shows that a single PAC-3 MSE missile costs the US military an average of about $4.3 million. At that price, the approved funding would cover more than 1,600 interceptors.
Lockheed Martin, however, cannot fulfill the orders quickly. The documents indicate that roughly 30 months pass between a repeat order and the actual delivery of the missiles. As a result, interceptors paid for after the conflict with Iran began in late February 2026 will reach customers no earlier than the end of 2028.
Delivery rates also depend on the capacity of Lockheed Martin’s facility in Texas, which currently produces about 650 PAC-3 MSE missiles per year.
RIA Novosti previously calculated that Washington had approved possible sales of a combined 1,450 missiles to the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar and Bahrain after the conflict with Iran began. The published information on Lockheed Martin contracts does not show which countries have already paid for specific batches.