A new funding request by the United States (US) Air Force and Navy reveals that they may soon acquire their own advanced weapon, the Lockheed Martin Corp. AIM-260. This comes months after Pakistan shot down Indian fighter jets, including Rafales, using Chinese-made Beyond Visual Range (BVR) missiles, Bloomberg reported on Friday.

 

The service branches have sought nearly $1 billion for the 2026 fiscal year, which begins on October 1, to initiate production of the classified system, according to the foreign outlet, citing budget documents and a service statement.

 

According to details, the Air Force, which is spearheading the development of the AIM-260 — formally known as the Joint Advanced Tactical Missile — has requested $368 million for its preliminary production run, along with an additional $300 million listed in its annual “Unfunded Priorities List” submitted to congressional defence committees. The Navy, for its part, sought $301 million.

 

As per experts, air-launched weapons that can shoot down planes at extreme ranges came into the spotlight in May, when Pakistani jets used Chinese-made PL-15 missiles to down Indian aircraft more than 100 miles away without risking return fire.

 

It is worth mentioning here that after the Indian Air Force (IAF) launched missiles into the cities of Pakistan and killed innocent civilians, the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) shot down six Indian aircraft on the night of May 6-7, including French-made 4.5-generation Rafales.

 

During a press conference on May 11, Indian Air Marshal AK Bharti, without disclosing the number of shot-down Rafales, admitted that “losses are part of the combat”, implying irreparable damage to their air force.

 

In last year’s annual report on Chinese military power, the Pentagon said the Chinese air force had likely declared the PL-17 air-to-air missile operational in 2023, saying the PL-15 follow-on “is believed to be able to strike targets from 400 kilometres (248 miles).” 

 

The new US missile “will have increased range over existing air-to-air weapons and will be effective in a variety of threat scenarios,” Bloomberg reported, citing the Air Force. The AIM-260 is designed to fit the internal weapons bays of the F-22 and F-35 fighters, but the Air Force said it would also be integrated with F-16 and F-15 jets.

Read More: Global militaries to study India-Pakistan fighter jet dogfight