Lockheed Martin's CEO said the weapons maker was running ahead of schedule on its plan to more than triple production of sorely needed Patriot missiles.

"We'll have built 2,000 next year," Chief Executive Jim Taiclet said Thursday at Morgan Stanley's annual investor conference in Laguna Beach, Calif. "There is significant international demand and right now the U.S. government is parsing out for Foreign Military Sales who gets what. If we've got them coming out of the end of the factory, that whole demand is going to be able to absorb it."

Lockheed Martin earlier this year committed to producing more than 2,000 Patriots by the end of 2030. Assembling a missile is one step in a testing, qualification and delivery process that can stretch more than two years from contract to delivery, however.

"We're investing ahead of need, expanding production capacity, growing our workforce and strengthening our supply chain to create additional flexibility and position ourselves to accelerate deliveries," the defense contractor said. "Our focus is on staying ahead of demand and continuing to push the boundaries of speed and scale across our operations."

The most advanced Partriot missile, the PAC-3 MSE, costs more than $4 million apiece and can thwart a wide range of long-range attacks. Shortages of the munitions have left Ukraine exposed to Russian missile barrages and are limiting American options in its ongoing war with Iran. The Journal reported that the U.S. fired 60 to 70 of the interceptors in a single week to protect assets against an Iranian attack.

Lockheed Martin earlier this year clinched a $35 billion preliminary contract to make more Patriot missiles and is exploring new, lower-cost designs that can be made with European partners. The massive orders will change the share of revenue that the company generates from missile sales, Taiclet said Thursday.