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The Space Development Agency (SDA), a division of the U.S. Space Force, has announced the awarding of contracts worth .5 billion to Northrop Grumman and Lockheed Martin. The contracts are for the construction and operation of a total of 72 satellites that will be part of SDA’s Tranche 2 Transport Layer, which is a part of the larger proliferated warfighter space architecture. This architecture consists of interconnected communications satellites in the Transport Layer and missile-detection and warning sensor satellites in the Tracking Layer.

Northrop Grumman has been awarded a contract valued at approximately 3 million for the production of 36 satellites, while Lockheed Martin’s contract for the same number of satellites is worth 6 million. The Tranche 2 Transport Layer will provide global communications access and deliver encrypted connectivity to support warfighter missions worldwide.

The 72 satellites ordered from Northrop Grumman and Lockheed Martin will be deployed in orbital planes of 12 satellites each, with the first plane scheduled to launch in September 2026. Additionally, SDA plans to acquire an additional 100 “Alpha” satellites for the Tranche 2 Transport Layer.

SDA follows a commercial-like model for satellite acquisition, allowing for the incremental addition of new technologies as they become available, as opposed to the traditional approach of funding one large acquisition over an extended period. This approach enables SDA to stay current with emerging technologies. Tranche 2 of the Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture will provide global persistence for Tranche 1 capabilities and will incorporate advanced tactical data links and future proliferated missions.

The Beta variant of the Tranche 2 Transport Layer satellites will be similar to the 126 Tranche 1 satellites that were ordered from Northrop Grumman, Lockheed Martin, and York Space Systems in the previous year.

These contracts make Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman the largest recipients of SDA satellite contracts to date. In addition to their involvement in Tranche 2, both companies were selected earlier to produce 42 satellites each for Tranche 1 and Northrop Grumman also secured a contract for 14 missile-tracking satellites for SDA’s Tracking Layer Tranche 1. Overall, Lockheed Martin has been awarded contracts for 88 satellites by SDA, while Northrop Grumman has secured orders for 92 satellites.

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