[11] The requirement for HIMARS came about in 1982, when the 9th Infantry Division (Motorized) saw the need to acquire a light multiple rocket launcher as a counterfire asset.

[13] With the waning of the Cold War and the growing interest in low-intensity operations, both the Field Artillery School and Missile Command realized that the M270 MLRS was too heavy for rapid deployment and pushed for the funding of HIMARS.

[13] The Gulf War gave new impetus towards fielding a lightweight MLRS, when the M270 proved too costly in airlift assets to deploy in theater and the launchers did not arrive with the initial wave of U.S.

[13] In April 1991, the HIMARS concept was tested at White Sands Missile Range, using a modified Honest John launcher.

[14] HIMARS was then developed as a private venture by Loral Vought Systems, later Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control, to meet this requirement.

In April 1998, the vehicles were delivered to the XVIII Airborne Corps for a two-year evaluation with 3rd Battalion, 27th Field Artillery Regiment.

In December 1999, the Aviation and Missile Command awarded Lockheed Martin a $65 million contract for engineering and manufacturing development.

In April 2003, the Army awarded Lockheed Martin a $96 million contract to begin low rate initial production.

[18] The HIMARS was also tested as a unified launch system for both artillery rockets and the SLAMRAAM surface-launched variant of the AMRAAM anti-aircraft missile.

In October 2022 the company announced it would boost production to 96 systems annually in response to increased demand caused by the war.

[24] In February 2010, the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) for Afghanistan indicated in a press release that two rockets fired from a HIMARS were believed to have fallen 300 metres short of their intended target, killing 12 civilians during Operation Moshtarak.

[27] A report in the New York Times in October 2010 credited the HIMARS with aiding the NATO offensive in Kandahar by targeting Taliban commanders' hideouts, forcing many to flee to Pakistan, at least temporarily.

[28] In November 2015, the U.S. Army revealed that it had deployed the HIMARS to Iraq, firing at least 400 rockets at Islamic State (ISIL) targets since the beginning of that summer.

In March 2016, a U.S. Army HIMARS fired rockets into Syria for the first time in support of Syrian rebels fighting ISIL, from launchers based in neighboring Jordan.

[32] In early September, international media and the U.S. State Department reported a newly deployed HIMARS had engaged ISIL targets in Syria near the Turkish border.

[53] On 18 July, Zaluzhnyi said: "An important factor contributing to our retention of defensive lines and positions is the timely arrival of M142 HIMARS, which deliver surgical strikes on enemy control posts, ammunition and fuel storage depots.

[62] On 30 August 2022, The Washington Post reported on Ukrainian claims to have successfully used decoy HIMARS units made out of wood to draw at least 10 Russian 3M-54 Kalibr cruise missiles.

[63] On 8 September, US General Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters: "We are seeing real and measurable gains from Ukraine in the use of these systems.

[64] A further 18 HIMARS were announced on 28 September, as part of an aid package aimed at meeting Ukraine's mid- and long-term needs, so deliveries are to begin in six months at the earliest.

[65][66] Ukraine had previously been provided with only M31 Unitary Warhead missiles, which are "not ideal against targets spread over large areas, as the deadly chunks are not designed to fly far."

As of early October they have been granted the M30A1 which uses the Alternative Warhead that can cover up to "half a square mile of land in a single salvo" with 180,000 tungsten steel BB sized balls.

[74] On 10 February 2024, two Ukrainian HIMARS systems were seen arriving onboard an Antonov Airlines An-124-100M at Harrisburg International Airport in Pennsylvania.

[80] On 5 March 2024, a Ukrainian HIMARS system was destroyed for the first confirmed time, after being tracked by a Russian drone and targeted with a missile near Nykanorivka, Donetsk Oblast.

[115] In November 2022, the publication The Strategist, published by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, warned that "acquiring the missile-delivery system without a dedicated surveillance and target acquisition capability means that Australia's long-range fires will have no eyes.

The AML is equipped with remote controlled launcher and fire-control system that ensures compatibility with current munitions used onboard both M270 MLRS and HIMARS.

[117] The concept video shows the AML can carry two pods compared to one on HIMARS and is expected to be compatible with munitions from other services or in development.

The Armaments Agency of the Polish Ministry of National Defense has signed a framework agreement with Lockheed Martin on September 11, 2023.