A new space based agreement between Airbus and Northrop Grumman will see the manufacturers share “experience, knowledge and capability” to meet UK SKYNET military satellite requirements (Airbus)
Correction 10/25/2023 at 10:49 am ET: The original version of this story included a quote from a Northrop Grumman executive referring to a past space agreement signed by the company and Airbus. This has been removed.
BELFAST — Defense and space industry giants Airbus and Northrop Grumman have teamed up to develop a “strategic partnership” aimed at securing spoils from the UK’s £6 billion ($7.3 billion) SKYNET military satellite communications program.
The two manufacturers signed a memorandum of understanding on Monday, designed to “bring together the latest technology” from each company and committing to mutually share “experience, knowledge and capability” to meet SKYNET’s competition requirements, according to an Airbus statement.
The UK MoD announced in August that Airbus, US prime Lockheed Martin and the Franco-Italian Thales Alenia Space group had been selected to take part in the SKYNET Enduring Capability (SKEC) Wideband Satellite System (WSS) Pre Qualification Questionnaire (PQQ) phase. Only one of the three will go on to receive a production contract.
An Airbus spokesperson told Breaking Defense the company expects the UK MoD to open an Invitation to Negotiate (ITN) phase, a procurement procedure where competitor bids are further assessed prior to any contract award, “before the end of the year.”
The WSS acquisition has a contract value of $1.5 billion ($1.9 billion) to support the design, manufacture and “post-design services” of up to three wideband Geostationary orbit (GEO) satellite systems, ground equipment, and launch operations, but the MoD has previously said the wider SKYNET program comes with an estimated value of £6 billion ($7.3 billion) and will include additional contracts.
A chosen contractor is expected to deliver on the WSS contract from December 2025 to December 2040, according to a prior industry notice. The new satellites are set to enter service between 2028 and 2036, replacing older capabilities.
SKEC’s second major line of effort covers a GEO Narrowband Satellite System (NSS) with an in-orbit date of 2028. Industry was asked to respond to a Pre-PQQ phase in August 2022. Airbus and Northrop Grumman are also partners for this effort.
Airbus already holds a contract valued at more than £500 million ($610 million) for SKYNET 6A, a future military communications satellite planned for launch in 2025 and based on the manufacturer’s Eurostar Neo telecommunications satellite platform.
Babcock and other industry partners claimed a separate £400 million ($488 million) award in February to operate and manage the SKYNET 6 satellite constellation, otherwise known as Skynet Service Delivery Wrap (SDW).
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