U.S. approves $69.3 million AMRAAM sale to Italy

The State Department today approved a $69.3 million foreign military sale of AIM-120C-8 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles and related equipment, according to the Defense Security Cooperation Agency.

The deal includes 12 AMRAAM munitions plus engineering, technical, logistics, integration and test support, DSCA said. It builds on an original $32.5 million sale that also included 12 of the missiles.

“Italy already has AMRAAMs in its inventory and will have no difficulty absorbing this equipment into its armed forces,” DSCA notes in a news release. “The proposed sale will improve Italy’s capability to meet current and future threats by ensuring Italy has modern, capable air-to-air munitions. It will also advance United States interoperability with NATO and the Italian Armed Forces.”

Also on Thursday, the State Department approved the sale of 173 Small Diameter Bomb IIs and 14 Captive Carry Reliability Tests to Italy, valued at an estimated $150 million, DSCA said.

“This proposed sale will support the foreign policy goals and national security objectives of the United States by improving the security of a NATO Ally that is a force for political stability and economic progress in Europe,” the agency states in a release. “The proposed sale will improve Italy’s capability to meet current and future threats by improving the Italian Air Force and Navy’s F-35 weapons capabilities.”

The main contractor for both sales is RTX in Arlington, VA.