Elon Musk's SpaceX continues to cement its status as the Pentagon's go-to launch provider, this time scoring $739 million in new U.S. Space Force contracts for military satellite missions.
The Space Force's Space Systems Command handed down nine task orders under the National Security Space Launch Phase 3 Lane 1 program, all aimed at bolstering America's missile warning and tracking capabilities. The missions will support two key defense agencies: the Space Development Agency and the National Reconnaissance Office.
Here's what SpaceX is launching: The SDA-2 missions are slated to kick off in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2026, followed by SDA-3 missions beginning in the third quarter of FY27. There's also the NTO-5 launches scheduled for the first quarter of FY27 and second quarter of FY28.
The Hardware Details
According to Space Systems Command, the SDA-2 task order includes two launches carrying 18 Tranche 2 Tracking Layer space vehicles built by L3Harris, plus a separate launch with eight Fire-control On Orbit-support-to-the-war Fighter space vehicles from Millennium Space Systems.
The SDA-3 task order involves two launches delivering 18 Tranche 2 Tracking Layer vehicles manufactured by Lockheed Martin (LMT).
Colonel Matt Flahive, system program director for Launch Acquisition at the U.S. Space Force, put it plainly: "Our mission to deliver national defense capabilities to the joint force is achieved with each task order we award."