WASHINGTON — Space launch provider and satellite manufacturer Rocket Lab has secured a deal worth over half a billion dollars to build 18 satellites for a U.S. government agency.
As disclosed in an SEC regulatory filing Dec. 21, Rocket Lab National Security will “design, manufacture, deliver and operate 18 space vehicles” as part of a U.S. government contract valued at $515 million. A spokesperson said the company could not provide further details.
Sources indicate that the customer is likely the Space Development Agency.
SDA, an organization under the U.S. Space Force, is building a mesh network of military satellites in low Earth orbit known as the Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture.
SDA Director Derek Tournear speaking at a conference earlier this month said the agency was negotiating a contract with an unspecified supplier for 18 satellites to expand the U.S. military low Earth orbit constellation.
One of the portions of SDA’s proliferated architecture is the Transport Layer Tranche 2 Beta, made up of communications satellites to enable beyond line-of-sight connectivity for military forces on the ground.
Transport Layer Tranche 2 Beta is projected to have 90 satellites. The agency in August announced it awarded $1.5 billion in contracts to Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman for 72 Beta satellites.
Tournear said Dec. 7 at a National Security Space Association event that SDA was planning to add another 18 Beta satellites to the constellation and was in negotiations with another vendor that he did not disclose.
The Transport Layer Tranche 2 Beta satellites — projected to launch in 2026 and 2027 — will carry radios using the UHF (Ultra High Frequency) and S-band frequencies that military and intelligence units rely upon for voice and low-speed data transmissions.
“We are looking at putting another approximately 18 satellites on contract, and we’re working with a third vendor to do that, and we…
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