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Air Force Seeks Cheaper Extended Range Attack Munition

The Air Force has issued a Request For Information to industry for its Extended Range Attack Munition, with responses due November 19.

Updated on Nov. 3, 2026 in Military

Bold flat-color editorial illustration of a slender gray missile hung beneath a jet wing over a pale open plain.
The Air Force issued a Request For Information for its Extended Range Attack Munition, a cheaper missile designed for mass production, with industry responses due November 19. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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The U.S. Air Force issued a Request For Information to industry for the Extended Range Attack Munition, known as ERAM, a small air-launched standoff missile designed for mass production. The RFI sets a November 19 response deadline and calls for first deliveries within three months of contract award.

Why it matters

The Pentagon is pursuing cheaper weapons that can be developed and fielded more quickly. Reported use of an ERAM variant by Ukraine against a Russian target shows how these munitions are being employed in the ongoing conflict.

The Air Force's RFI calls for more than 1,000 ERAMs delivered within 15 months, with a range greater than 250 nautical miles and terminal accuracy within 10 meters amid jamming. The number of missiles and the production contract award timing remain unresolved in the RFI stage.

The players

U.S. Air Force

The branch of the U.S. armed forces responsible for air and space warfare, which issued the ERAM Request For Information.

Zone 5 Technologies

A defense contractor that received one of two 2024 Air Force prototype contracts for the ERAM program.

CoAspire

A defense contractor that received one of two 2024 Air Force prototype contracts for the ERAM program.

The details

ERAM is a 500-pound class weapon designed to fly at more than Mach 0.6 and strike targets beyond 250 nautical miles. In 2024 the Air Force awarded prototype contracts to Zone 5 Technologies and CoAspire, and a live warhead test was conducted at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida in January 2026.

Timeline

  1. January 2024: The Air Force published the original ERAM RFI.

  2. 2024: Prototype contracts were awarded to two companies.

  3. August 2025: The Trump administration announced an $825 million sale of 3,350 ERAMs to Ukraine.

  4. January 2026: A live warhead test was conducted at Eglin Air Force Base.

  5. November 19: Response deadline for the current RFI.

Big Picture

The RFI moves the ERAM program from its 2024 prototype contracts toward production at a scale of more than 1,000 missiles. It reflects the Pentagon's stated push for cheaper weapons developed and delivered more quickly.

The program's push for cheaper, faster-produced munitions shapes the defense budget and the weapons supplied to allies. Taxpayers and defense industry observers will see how contracts are awarded as the RFI moves toward procurement.

The takeaway

Cheaper, faster-to-build munitions are becoming a central goal of U.S. weapons procurement. Watch the November 19 RFI deadline for signals on which companies will move into production.

What happens next

Industry responses to the Request For Information are due November 19.

Further reading

Explore more in Military coverage of weapons programs and defense procurement.

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