Raytheon moving headquarters to DC suburb

Raytheon Technologies on Tuesday announced it will move its global headquarters from Massachusetts to Arlington, Va., making it the latest major defense contractor to reside in the Washington, D.C., region.

The maker of the thousands of Stinger missiles sent to Ukraine amid its war with Russia said in a statement the move “increases agility in supporting U.S. government and commercial aerospace customers.”

Its headquarters will be moved to Arlington’s Rosslyn neighborhood, where the defense contractor already has offices for its intelligence and space business, the company noted.  

It also pointed to the area’s position as “a convenient travel hub for the company’s global customers and employees.” 

With the move, the surrounding Washington, D.C. suburbs will now host the headquarters for the top five U.S. defense companies: Lockheed Martin in Bethesda, Md.; Raytheon and Boeing in Arlington; Northrop Grumman in Falls Church, Va.; and General Dynamics in Reston, Va. Boeing announced its move to Arlington early last month.  

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) announced the Raytheon move in a statement on Twitter, saying the shift “demonstrates that the Commonwealth is the best destination for the aerospace and defense community.” 

As part of its announcement, Raytheon said it “has not accepted or sought any financial incentives from any state or municipality to support the establishment of the global headquarters office in Virginia.” 

Raytheon, the No. 2 American defense contractor after Lockheed, has some 600 facilities across 44 states and territories, employing roughly 175,000 people, according to the firm. 

Headquartered in the Boston area since it was founded in 1922, the company became officially known as Raytheon Technologies in 2019 when it bought United Technologies and expanded its portfolio to commercial aircraft.