Pentagon Spending $640Mln on New THAAD Anti-Missile Batteries - Reports

The US Department of Defense plans to buy additional Terminal High Altitude Area Defense batteries.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The US Department of Defense plans to buy additional Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) batteries worth nearly two thirds of a billion dollars in order to face growing ballistic missile threats, according to media reports.

"In its fiscal year 2017 budget request, the Defense Department is asking for $370 million to procure THAAD equipment, and an additional $270 million for research, development, test and evaluation," National Defense journal reported in its April 1 issue online.

The journal quoted Missile Defense Agency chief Vice Admiral James Syring as saying the Defense Department plans to continue THAAD interceptor procurement over the next five years, for a total of more than 400 missiles.

THAAD, manufactured by Lockheed Martin, is intended to shoot down incoming missiles both inside and outside the atmosphere with "hit-to-kill" interceptors.

Syring noted that the US Army currently has five batteries, but two more batteries should be delivered by 2018.

The system is designed to shoot down short- and medium-range missiles, but the Defense Department is planning to test it against an intermediate range ballistic missile next year or 2018, the report said.