FOREST, Miss. (AP) -- Defense contractor Raytheon Co. has announced an expansion in Forest that will bring 150 new jobs to the area.
Company officials and Gov. Phil Bryant made the announcement Monday in Forest.
Raytheon Space and Airborne Systems President Rick Yuse said in a news release that the expansion reflects an anticipated growth in airborne radar and electronic warfare markets.
The Mississippi Development Authority is giving the company $6 million to pay for renovation and infrastructure, as well as for the construction of the 20,000-square-foot addition. A company spokesman wouldn't say how much the company is investing.
Raytheon will increase capacity at what is already one of the largest defense manufacturing plants in Mississippi. The new workers are expected to be hired over time.
This year, the Forest plant ramped up its fighter jet radar production rates 10-fold, achieving a 2012 on-time delivery rate of 100 percent. It also celebrated an industry-first milestone with the delivery of more than 500 Active Electronically Scanned Array aircraft radars.
Raytheon was selected earlier this year to upgrade South Korean F-16 fighters using those radars, as part of a sale of military technology to South Korea. Raytheon wouldn't say if the South Korean deal is why it's expanding in Forest.
In addition to fighter jet radars, the plant makes the Sentinel air defense radar, with 57 additional ones in production for the U.S. Army.
Yuse said that over the past three decades Raytheon has added more than 30 programs and expanded to three shifts per day at the Forest plant.
Headquartered in Waltham, Mass., Raytheon employs 68,000 worldwide.
