The US State Department has approved a potential $200-million sale to the United Kingdom for additional Navy Multiband Terminals (NMTs), expanding the Royal Navy’s access to the Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF) satellite communications network. RTX Corporation has been named as the prime contractor for the new package.
London’s latest request adds six AEHF Navy Multiband Terminals, supplementing an earlier Foreign Military Sales case that covered two terminals valued at just over $41 million. With this latest approval, the UK now has a total of eight hardened, high-capacity communication terminals intended to strengthen the Royal Navy’s strategic communications capabilities across ships, submarines, and supporting infrastructure.
The proposal includes a wide range of support equipment and services: crypto devices, submarine high-data-rate masts, spares, testing, integration support, operator training, reference documentation, and comprehensive contractor and government assistance. These NMT systems are anticipated to be installed on the Royal Navy’s upcoming Dreadnought-class ballistic missile submarines, enhancing secure communications with maritime and land-based assets during routine operations.
This sale reflects ongoing and expanding US-UK defense cooperation, which has seen multiple major developments in 2024 and 2025. The UK’s E-7 Wedgetail airborne early-warning fleet continues to benefit from US integration support, while sustainment and software packages for the F-35B fleet advanced this year. Washington has also cleared additional AIM-120 AMRAAM sales and continued to support the UK’s P-8A Poseidon fleet through training, sensor modernization, and sustainment services—reinforcing one of NATO’s most active bilateral defense partnerships.
