US military pushes companies to ‘dramatically accelerate’ weapons production as Iran war burns through supply, memo says

Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Get our free Inside Washington email Email * SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy noticeWith the Iran war draining U.S. weapons stockpiles, the Pentagon is reportedly leaning hard on defense companies to bump up production — and fast. “Working directly with industry leaders to accelerate production is not new,” chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell wrote in a statement to The Independent. The U.S. military had 2,330 Patriot systems and 452 THAAD systems before the war, according to a July report from the Center for Strategic and International Studies. As of July 27, the organization estimated 759 to 827 Patriot systems and 234 to 278 THAAD systems remained.