Laser communications terminal work for U.S. Space Force to move into new phase with General Atomics
NewsApril 28, 2026
SAN DIEGO, California. General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems (GA-EMS) has been selected to perform Phase 3 of the U.S. Space Force’s Enterprise Space Terminal (EST) program after government verification of its optical communication terminal (OCT), the company announced in a statement.
Phase 3 will move the EST effort from prototype work into flight hardware production and demonstration, the statement reads. The company’s OCT was tested at MIT Lincoln Laboratory’s Optical Terminal Verification Testbed (OTVT), where the test campaign verified performance, interoperability, and technical readiness for system integration and flight terminal development, according to the statement.
The EST program is intended to establish standardized OCTs that allow spacecraft from multiple programs and vendors to exchange data directly through a common enterprise waveform, the company says. The architecture is designed to support satellite laser crosslinks beyond low Earth orbit and reduce dependence on ground relay stations, the statement adds.
GA-EMS is the prime contractor on the effort and is working with L3Harris on the modem subsystem and Advanced Space on performance modeling, according to the company.
