SpaceX Secures $1.6B Space Force Deal
PHOTO CAPTION: The SpaceX facility and a Falcon 9 rocket booster are shown, as the company prepares to file for an initial public offering (IPO), in Hawthorne California, U.S., April 23, 2026. REUTERS/Mike Blake
WASHINGTON, July 29 — SpaceX won $1.6 billion in U.S. Space Force orders Wednesday to conduct 18 Falcon 9 launches through 2027, the service said.
The missions will carry Pentagon satellites designed to detect and track airborne objects.
The 18 missions were assigned through two task orders under the Space Force’s primary launch procurement program.
SpaceX, United Launch Alliance, Blue Origin and other U.S. launch companies admitted to the program compete for individual mission assignments.
SpaceX has secured at least $7 billion in Pentagon contracts this year as President Donald Trump’s administration develops its Golden Dome missile-defense system.
Golden Dome is expected to be a roughly $185 billion multiyear effort that will rely heavily on the launch and satellite capabilities of Elon Musk’s company.
In May, SpaceX won $6.5 billion in Space Force satellite contracts.
That total included $4.16 billion for a network of satellites designed to identify moving airborne targets.
Three days later, the company received another $2.29 billion for communications satellites that can transmit data between missile-warning and tracking sensors and interceptors in near real time.
Eric Zarybnisky, a Space Force acquisition official, said the latest award was completed through an “unprecedented two-month acquisition timeline.”
The service has sought for years to accelerate its purchase of spacecraft and rocket launches from private companies.
SpaceX has maintained a substantial lead over its competitors in winning Pentagon contracts.
Some U.S. lawmakers have raised concerns in recent years that the Pentagon may be relying too heavily on one company.
Space Force officials have said they want to increase activity and competition within the U.S. space industry.
United Launch Alliance, the joint venture between Boeing and Lockheed Martin, has faced a months-long technical investigation involving a faulty booster-separation system on its Vulcan rocket.
Vulcan is certified to launch Pentagon satellites.
Blue Origin, the space company owned by Jeff Bezos, is investigating the explosion of its New Glenn rocket on a launchpad in May before its fourth flight.
New Glenn is also included in the Space Force launch program but is expected to remain grounded until at least the end of the year.
(Source: Reuters)
