Key facts
- L3Harris Technologies received a $955 million contract from the U.S. Space Force.
- The contract is for 18 satellites to be used in the Golden Dome missile defense shield.
- The satellites are designed to detect and track advanced missile threats.
- L3Harris and Sierra Space were awarded a combined $1.75 billion for 36 satellites for the Accelerated Missile Defense Tranche 3 program.
- The satellites are part of the Pentagon's effort to build a network for missile warning and tracking.
Defense supplier L3Harris Technologies has been awarded a $955 million contract by the U.S. Space Force to produce 18 satellites for the nation's Golden Dome missile defense shield. The satellites are designed to detect and track advanced missile threats.
This contract is part of a larger $1.75 billion award from the Space Development Agency (SDA) to L3Harris and Sierra Space for the Accelerated Missile Defense Tranche 3 program. Sierra Space received a separate contract valued at approximately $798 million for its share of 18 satellites. These new satellites are intended to expand the Tracking Layer of the Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture (PWSA), a network of low Earth orbit satellites aimed at detecting, tracking, and defending against ballistic and hypersonic missile threats.
L3Harris has been expanding its satellite manufacturing capacity in the U.S. to support initiatives like President Donald Trump's Golden Dome plan. The company has received orders for over 70 missile-tracking and defense satellites from the U.S., with five already in orbit. The newly contracted satellites are slated for availability for launch by the end of 2028 and will be interoperable with existing SDA Tracking Layer spacecraft.
Defense contractors like L3Harris have seen increased business due to robust U.S. defense spending and rising global geopolitical tensions.