Air Force Infrared surveillance satellites contract won by Lockheed Martin
NewsMarch 06, 2013
SUNNYVALE, CA. Lockheed Martin won a $284.4 million fixed-price Air Force contract to supply long lead parts for the fifth and sixth Geosynchronous Earth Orbit (GEO) satellites that are in the Space Based Infrared System (SBIRS) missile warning constellation.
SBIRS has a mix of GEO satellites, associated ground hardware and software, and payloads in highly elliptical earth (HEO) orbit.
Lockheed Martin had previously won a contract to complete non-recurring engineering activities for the GEO-5 and 6 and procure select long lead spacecraft parts allowing supplier production lines to set the lowest possible price for each component. This next phase will authorize the purchase of the remaining long lead spacecraft components. A final contract for full production under fixed-price terms is expected to be awarded at a later date.
Lockheed Martin’s SBIRS work to date includes four HEO payloads and four GEO satellites, as well as ground assets to process, receive, and disseminate the infrared mission data. Under this new contract, the team will procure long lead parts for the fifth and sixth GEO satellites.Two HEO payloads and the first geosynchronous (GEO-1) satellite were already launched. GEO-2 is scheduled for launch this month.
The Infrared Space Systems Directorate at the U.S. Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center leads the SBIRS team. The prime contractor is Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman is the payload integrator. Air Force Space Command officials operate the SBIRS system.
