By Troy Turner
American military planners urgently seek battlefield solutions to growing threats involving hypersonic missiles, and workers in Alabama are involved in developing new defenses against the weapons.
Three of the biggest names among American defense contractors – Boeing, Northrop Grumman and Lockheed Martin – recently received new or upgraded contracts that involve their operational sites in the Huntsville area.
Hypersonic weapons can fly more than five times the speed of sound, and recent versions are much more maneuverable as well, capable of avoiding many of today’s air and missile defense systems. That makes defending against them more complicated.
In response, the American military has an all-out call for proposals and development of effective hypersonic weapons of its own, both for offensive and defensive needs.
Northrop Grumman recently received a contract modification bringing its work to develop and refine its Glide Phase Intercept program to a value of almost $292 million. The work is being done in several locations across the country, including Huntsville.
Northrop Grumman Corp., in Chandler, Arizona, is the listed recipient, and terms call for the company to “continue to develop and refine their Glide Phase Intercept concept during the Technology Development Phase.”
“The work will be performed in Chandler, Arizona; Colorado Springs, Colorado; Huntsville, Alabama; San Diego, California; Boulder, Colorado; and Linthicum, Maryland,” the Department of Defense reported. “The performance period is from Nov. 15, 2023, through Feb. 15, 2025.”
The contract includes research, development, test and evaluation funds. The Missile Defense Agency operation in Dahlgren, Virginia, is the contracting entity.
The Boeing Co., Huntsville operation, was awarded a $71 million cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for its Glide Breaker Phase 2 program.
The additional funding allows the program to proceed to its next stage in developing systems and a “kill vehicle” for intercept missions.
Work will be performed in Huntsville (36%); Seal Beach, California (21%); St. Louis, Missouri (18%); Elkton, Maryland (14%); Buffalo, New York (4%); Gardner, Massachusetts (3%); College Station, Texas (2%); West Lafayette, Indiana (1%); and Minneapolis, Minnesota (1%), with an expected completion date of February 2027.
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, in Arlington, Virginia, is the contracting agency.
Lockheed Martin Space, Huntsville, is working with a $165 million contact to continue performing engineering services and work involving target development. The work will be performed in Huntsville.
The performance period is from January 2024 through January 2027, for research, development, test and evaluation work.
The Missile Defense Agency, headquartered on Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, is the contracting agency.
Meanwhile, Lockheed Martin’s Missiles and Fire Control, in Grand Prairie, Texas, was awarded a $101 million modification contract for HIMARS/MLRS fire control systems and launcher-loader module logistics support.
Work on that contract will be performed in Grand Prairie, Texas; Budd Lake, New Jersey; Palm Bay, Florida; Brownsboro, Alabama; Whippany, New Jersey; Fort Worth, Texas; Boca Raton, Florida; York, Pennsylvania; Jackson, Mississippi; Laurel, Maryland; Irving, Texas; Clearwater, Florida; Hauppauge, New York; Arlington, Texas; Irving, Texas; North Richland Hills, Texas; Binghamton, New York; Orlando, Florida; Johnstown, Pennsylvania; Fort Wayne, Indiana; Dallas, Texas; Valencia, California; and Clinton, Pennsylvania, with an estimated completion date of Dec. 31, 2025.
U.S. Army Contracting Command, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, is the contracting agency.
Troy Turner is editor-in-chief and senior consultant for AlaDefense.com. He can be contacted at [email protected].
(Above photo: Boeing’s Glide Breaker concept. Photo courtesy of Boeing media.)
