Army plans to complete new air and missile defense strategy by October ‘25

SMD 2024 — Eyeing a host of new weapons and the 2040 battlefield, the US Army is revamping its air and missile defense strategy for the first time in five years, according to a three-star general helping the change.

“As we look at the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine, it’s…easy to see the challenges that are out there that we must face moving forward,” Army Space and Missile Defense Command head Lt. Gen. Sean Gainey told an audience today.

“It’s time to look even further into the future” and develop a new air and missile defense (AMD) strategy, he separately said. “We are using what we’ve learned from previous years in the current conflicts to design the type of force we’ll need to assure, deter and, if necessary, fight to win on tomorrow’s battlefield.”

Gainey kicked off the Space and Missile Defense symposium in Huntsville, Ala., in part, with news of the strategy revamp he aims to have completed by October 2025. The plan, he added, is to work with a host of offices including the Army Fires Center of Excellence and the Army Futures Command on a new “integrated approach” that pushes the existing AMD 2028 strategy [pdf], published in 2019, further into the future.

While he did not detail the precise questions he and other leaders are seeking to answer or the potential implications, the assumption is that the AMD force of 2040 will need to be prepared to operate under constant observation while continuously fighting, requiring 360-degree coverage — “a non-negotiable,” Gainey said — and better use of artificial intelligence.

“This strategy is going to allow us the opportunity to lay a foundation with how we move forward with capability development, to be able to address that future threat, leveraging the studies and analysis that’s being done by the Army’s Futures Command [AFC],” he told reporters after the speech.

Since Gen James Rainey took the AFC’s reins nearly two years ago, the four-star general has been focusing on what the future force will look like, including a not yet released tactical fires study and a new operating concept that could, in part, change formations. 

At the same time, the service is preparing for a host of new capabilities to come online including in the AMD arena like the Patriot radar replacement called Lower Tier Air and Missile Defense System, the Indirect Fire Protection Capability Increment 2 (IFPC Inc 2), the Integrated Battle Command System and more.

Between the looming force structure changes and new AMD capabilities, Gainey, Rainey and other leaders will have a host of topics to explore in the updated strategy. 

“This team recognizes that now is the time to take on these issues: AMD is always at the forefront of our minds, forefront of our partners, forefront of our senior leaders,” Gainey told the audience.