Australia’s Future Upgraded Mogami-Class Frigates to Be Equipped with Raytheon SeaRAM Missile Defense Systems.

Australia will equip its future Upgraded Mogami-class frigates with Raytheon’s SeaRAM missile defense system, strengthening the Royal Australian Navy’s ability to survive cruise missile, drone and saturation attacks in contested Indo-Pacific waters. RTX announced on May 11, 2026, that Mitsubishi Heavy Industries selected the U.S.-made system for the Sea3000 frigate program, linking American missile-defense technology with Japanese warship construction as Canberra accelerates a major naval modernization effort.

SeaRAM gives the new frigates an autonomous last-line defense capability by combining the Phalanx sensor architecture with an 11-missile Rolling Airframe Missile launcher able to engage supersonic and subsonic threats at close range. The system reinforces the survivability of Australia’s future surface fleet during high-intensity maritime operations while deepening interoperability between Australian, U.S. and allied naval forces as Indo-Pacific militaries adapt to increasingly dense missile and unmanned-threat environments.

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Australia has selected Raytheon’s SeaRAM missile defense system for its future Japanese-built Mogami-class frigates, strengthening the Royal Australian Navy’s ability to counter cruise missiles, drones and saturation attacks in the Indo-Pacific (Picture Source: Japanese MoD /RTX)

RTX announced on May 11, 2026, that Raytheon had been selected by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to provide SeaRAM ship self-defense systems for Australia’s future Upgraded Mogami-class frigates. The contract supports the Sea3000 General Purpose Frigate program, which will replace the Royal Australian Navy’s decommissioning Anzac-class frigates with 11 new Japanese-designed surface combatants. According to RTX, this is Australia’s first procurement of SeaRAM, placing a proven U.S. terminal missile defense system at the center of one of Canberra’s most important naval modernization programs. The decision is also strategically relevant because it connects American missile-defense technology, Japanese shipbuilding and Australian fleet expansion at a time when Indo-Pacific naval forces are adapting to missile, drone and saturation-attack threats.

Under the contract, Raytheon will supply SeaRAM launchers, Blast Test Vehicles and technical services to support installation and testing on the first three Australian frigates, which are being built in Japan by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. Work will take place in Louisville, Kentucky, with deliveries expected to begin in late 2028. Although the value of the contract has not been disclosed, the timing is significant: Australia signed contracts for the first three general purpose frigates on April 18, 2026, and Raytheon’s selection followed less than one month later, showing that Canberra is rapidly moving from platform acquisition to combat-system integration.

The Sea3000 program is designed to deliver a larger and more survivable Australian surface fleet at a time of increasing missile, drone and maritime pressure in the Indo-Pacific. The Australian Government has stated that the first Upgraded Mogami-class frigate is scheduled for delivery to the Royal Australian Navy in 2029, while Mitsubishi Heavy Industries has said construction will begin at its Nagasaki Shipyard & Machinery Works and that the first completed frigate is expected to be handed over by December 2029. Future ships are planned to transition to construction in Western Australia, subject to consolidation of the Henderson Defence Precinct, creating a program that links Japanese shipbuilding, Australian industrial sovereignty and U.S. defensive weapons technology.

SeaRAM gives the future Australian frigates a terminal defense layer against close-range air and missile threats. The system combines the Phalanx Close-In Weapon System architecture with the Rolling Airframe Missile, replacing the 20 mm Gatling gun with an 11-missile launcher. RTX describes SeaRAM as a system designed to defend ships against supersonic and subsonic threats, including cruise missiles, drones and helicopters. It combines the RAM missile’s range, accuracy and agility with the Phalanx Block 1B high-resolution search-and-track sensor and quick-response capability, giving a ship an autonomous defensive option when threats reach the final layer of protection.

For Australia’s Mogami-class frigates, this capability is particularly relevant because the ships are intended to operate across long distances and in contested maritime zones. The Upgraded Mogami-class design selected by Australia is expected to offer a range of up to 10,000 nautical miles, a 32-cell Vertical Launch System, surface-to-air and anti-ship missiles, a crew of 92 sailors and officers, and the ability to operate the MH-60R Seahawk maritime combat helicopter. SeaRAM does not replace area air defense missiles, but it strengthens the ship’s final protective layer against missiles, unmanned systems and airborne threats that may penetrate outer defenses during high-intensity operations.

The selection also benefits from a wider operational and industrial logic. RTX states that Australia will become a new member of the global RAM user community, which supports interoperability with allied and partner navies already using the same missile-defense family. For the Royal Australian Navy, this matters because common defensive systems can simplify training, logistics, sustainment and coalition operations. For the United States, it reinforces the role of American naval-defense technology as a trusted standard among allies facing increasingly complex air and missile threats.

The integration profile of SeaRAM is another important factor. RTX describes SeaRAM as an above-deck capability modeled on the Phalanx footprint, using the same power requirements and requiring minimal shipboard modification. This matters for a new frigate program that must balance combat power, delivery speed, crew efficiency and integration risk. For Australia, the system offers a U.S.-made missile defense layer that can be integrated without forcing a major redesign of the ship. For Raytheon, an RTX business with long experience in integrated air and missile defense, naval weapons, sensors, interceptors, hypersonics and space-based systems, the contract reinforces its role in supplying key defensive capabilities to the United States and its allies.

The strategic message is broader than a single naval contract. Australia’s 2026 National Defence Strategy and Integrated Investment Program emphasize greater self-reliance, a strategy of denial, stronger sovereign industrial resilience, more diverse international industrial partnerships and a larger, more lethal Navy with more surface ships and conventionally armed nuclear-powered submarines. In that context, SeaRAM becomes part of a wider deterrence architecture: Australian frigates based on a Japanese design, fitted with U.S. terminal missile defense, and intended to secure maritime trade routes, northern approaches and coalition operations across the Indo-Pacific.

Raytheon’s selection to equip Australia’s future Mogami-class frigates with SeaRAM gives the Royal Australian Navy more than a close-in defensive weapon. It adds a proven U.S. missile-defense system to a Japanese-built frigate program that will define Australia’s surface fleet renewal for decades. In military terms, SeaRAM strengthens the survivability of ships that may face cruise missiles, drones and saturation attacks in contested waters. In strategic terms, it deepens U.S.-Japan-Australia defense alignment at a time when Indo-Pacific deterrence increasingly depends on allied fleets that are interoperable, missile-ready and supported by resilient industrial networks. This contract signals a clear shift: Australia’s future frigates will not only replace aging Anzac-class ships, they will enter service as part of a wider allied maritime shield built around U.S. combat technology and regional defense cooperation.

Written by Teoman S. Nicanci – Defense Analyst, Army Recognition Group

Teoman S. Nicanci holds degrees in Political Science, Comparative and International Politics, and International Relations and Diplomacy from leading Belgian universities, with research focused on Russian strategic behavior, defense technology, and modern warfare. He is a defense analyst at Army Recognition, specializing in the global defense industry, military armament, and emerging defense technologies.