The Missile Defense Agency (MDA) has tapped Northrop Grumman to expand simulation and threat modeling tools used to train US missile defense personnel against increasingly sophisticated threats.
The contract includes a two-year base period valued at $68.8 million with five one-year options, bringing the potential total to $606.5 million.
Northrop Grumman said it will provide advanced capabilities that support round-the-clock operational planning and training. It will also build on existing digital engineering expertise and AI-enabled development tools to accelerate delivery of simulation technologies while reducing costs.
The new task order replaces the company’s Specialized Warfighter Development Contract, under which it supported the MDA for nearly a decade.
Raymond Sharp, vice president of missile defense integration at Northrop Grumman, said the company will focus on “delivering advanced technologies that strengthen MDA’s mission and provide the warfighter with unmatched adaptability and performance against evolving threats.”
The work will be performed under the US Air Force’s Enterprise-Wide Agile Acquisition Contract and supports the agency’s Modeling and Simulation Vistas, Threat and Advanced Simulation Development program.
US Boosts Air Defense Training
The US has continued investing in training environments to prepare operators for increasingly complex air threats.
In July, the US Marine Corps established the Marine Corps Robotics Integration Group to standardize training for small unmanned aerial systems and counter-drone capabilities across the force. The new organization operates under the Marine Air Ground Task Force Training Command at Twentynine Palms, California.
Earlier, in June, Kratos secured $65 million in contracts to deliver aviation simulators and other training systems supporting operations and maintenance for multiple US and allied aircraft platforms.
The effort follows a January exercise in which US Navy F-35 pilots demonstrated cockpit control of Collaborative Combat Aircraft within the Joint Simulation Environment, advancing crewed-uncrewed teaming through realistic mission scenarios.
