Space Force picks 15 firms for $981 million space test and training contract

what happened

Space Systems Command selected 15 companies for the NITE-STAR indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract vehicle, worth up to $981 million in task orders through July 2032, per SpaceNews and GovConWire. The vendors are Amentum, BAE Systems, Boeing, CACI, Firefly Aerospace, L3Harris Technologies, Lockheed Martin Space, Northrop Grumman, Pacific Crest Alliance, Parsons Government Services, Redwire, Rocket Lab, Sierra Space, Viasat and York Space Systems, chosen from 20 bids submitted after a March request for proposals. The vehicle will fund satellites, sensors, ground systems and cyberattack- and jamming-simulation tools for the National Space Test and Training Complex, where operators practice responding to threats against US satellites.

why it matters

The award gives newer commercial entrants like Rocket Lab, Firefly, Redwire, Sierra Space and York Space Systems standing to compete for Space Force training-infrastructure task orders alongside legacy primes through 2032, another multi-year revenue channel as the Space Force treats jamming, laser dazzling and other counterspace threats as training baseline rather than edge cases.

for who

Space Force suppliers, defense-focused smallsat and sensor manufacturers

signal-to-noise

quick facts

Companies

Amentum, BAE Systems, Boeing, CACI, Firefly Aerospace, L3Harris, Lockheed Martin Space, Northrop Grumman, Pacific Crest Alliance, Parsons Government Services, Redwire, Rocket Lab, Sierra Space, Viasat, York Space Systems, Space Systems Command

Category

procurement

Impact

notable

SNR

4 / 5

Event date

2026-07-31

Published

2026-07-31 17:32 UTC