“Northrop Grumman is delivering advanced weapons capabilities at scale today, including missile components like tactical solid rocket motors and payloads, and – with today’s opening – advanced strike missiles,” said Frank DeMauro, vice president and general manager, weapons system, Northrop Grumman. “The cutting-edge Missile Integration Facility expands manufacturing capacity and our team’s ability to deliver for our customers at a critical time. The MIF is the latest shining example of how Northrop Grumman’s $1 billion-dollar-plus investment in advanced manufacturing facilities since 2018 ensures we’ve got capacity needed to meet growing customer demand and support a resilient defense industrial base now and in the future.”
The new facility will add engineering and manufacturing jobs, reinforcing Northrop Grumman’s role as one of West Virginia’s largest manufacturing employers. It will also accelerate production of the U.S. Navy’s AARGM-ER, a high-speed extended-range air-to-ground missile, while replenishing stockpiles to support the US and its allies.
Senator Shelley Moore Capito said: “Expanding our capacity to produce the world’s most advanced munitions is vital to ensuring that our men and women in uniform have the tools they need to deter aggression or prevail in a future conflict. The Allegany Ballistics Laboratory is a crucial part of our defense industrial base, and I’m proud that some of our nation’s most technologically advanced weapons will be built right here at home in West Virginia. As a member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense, I look forward to seeing the positive impacts of this expansion project on U.S. national security and the state of West Virginia.”
Representative Riley M. Moore added: “Opening this new Missile Integration Facility is an important step in bringing manufacturing back to West Virginia. West Virginia is proud to be at the forefront of reindustrializing—bringing critical production back home, creating more jobs, while equipping our men and women in uniform with the tools that they need to deter our enemies. Northrop Grumman’s continued investment in our state is a testament to the vital role we play in securing the future of American defense and rebuilding our heartland.”
Northrop Grumman said the expansion builds on more than $1 billion invested since 2018 to strengthen facilities and technologies across its weapons and missile programmes. The company has increased manufacturing space at ABL to over one million square feet, enhancing capacity to deliver advanced weapons systems and missile components to meet rising global demand.
