The U.S. Air Force solicited industry white papers seeking concepts for a counter-air capability that can be manufactured rapidly and at a fraction of the cost of conventional munitions as a future class of the Affordable Mass Munitions portfolio.
In a solicitation, the service explained that the Counter-Air Missile Program (CAMP) – initially outlined in the fiscal 2025 reconciliation bill, the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” – aims to establish a ground-launched missile system that could evolve into a low-cost air-to-air weapon.
“The highest priority of this effort is the development and demonstration of an affordable, open system, modular, and highly producible ground-launched capability. Ground-launch efforts will serve as a risk reduction effort expediting missile design maturation and evaluation for future affordable air-to-air missile capabilities,” the solicitation states.
CAMP is still in the early concept phase, but the Air Force envisions systems costing no more than $500,000 per all-up round and producible at a rate of at least 1,000 munitions per year at full-rate production. The goal is to field a prototype using existing high-readiness components and achieve a first flight within nine months of contract award.
The Air Force wants a counter-air weapon that prioritizes affordability and mass production over exquisite capabilities, with potential annual output of 1,000–3,500 units at full rate.
The presolicitation does not provide details on specific performance characteristics. However, the notice says the initial ground-launched configuration will serve as both a capability and a risk-reduction effort to mature designs for a future air-launched variant.
The CAMP program will be carried out in phases to develop, integrate, and demonstrate prototype systems under a Phase 1 effort built around incremental capability cycles. Phase 2 would transition the ground-launched system into a Program of Record for Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation, as well as production. Future phases are expected to evolve the initial ground-launched design into an air-to-air variant.
This request focuses on Phase 1, which aims to deliver a ground-launched configuration and a product-level technical data package ready for high-rate production. The planned Phase 1 performance period is 24 months.
White papers are due Dec. 2, and the service plans to host an “Ask Me Anything” session the week of Nov. 17 to offer additional details. The Air Force said it will release more information once the event date is finalized.