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MDA Awards Boost-Phase Interceptor Contract to Northrop Grumman
The U.S. Missile Defense Agency yesterday awarded a contract to defense contractor Northrop Grumman to develop and test a Kinetic Energy Interceptor ballistic missile defense system (see GSN, Sept. 9). Defense officials hope the KEI system will be able to intercept enemy missiles in the boost phase of their flight, from three to five minutes after launch. The contract is worth about $4.5 billion over the next eight years, according to a Defense Department release. Northrop Grumman and Lockheed Martin had both led teams developing KEI concepts over the last eight months. Each team was awarded $10 million for their concept work (U.S. Defense Department release, Dec. 3). Included in the Northrop team are defense contractors Raytheon and Orbital Sciences. Raytheon will lead the interceptor development while Orbital will conduct booster vehicle design, development, testing and early production (Orbital Sciences release, Dec. 3). “KEI is critical to our country’s overall defense and will also serve as a visible, deployable deterrent to those who would threaten us,” said Ronald Sugar, Northrop Grumman’s chairman and chief executive. The system, set to be deployed in 2010, will include satellites to detect enemy missile launches and 36-foot-long ground-based interceptors (Jesus Sanchez, Los Angeles Times, Dec. 3). A Lockheed Martin spokesman said the company was “disappointed” but will “continue to support our Missile Defense Agency customer without question” (Lynn Lunsford, Wall Street Journal, Dec. 4).
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