Overview
- The Space Force announced the $4.16 billion Other Transaction Authority award to SpaceX on May 29 to launch the first increment of the Space-Based Airborne Moving Target Indicator program.
- The satellites, expected to use SpaceX’s Starshield variant of Starlink, are to provide a proliferated low‑Earth-orbit sensor layer that can detect and track aircraft, cruise missiles and other airborne threats.
- The deal is framed as an initial capability with a target to field a constellation by 2028 and the Space Force expects to issue multiple follow‑on awards from a vendor pool rather than rely on a single supplier.
- The contract follows a separate $2.29 billion SpaceX award for the Space Data Network backbone, giving the company a central role in both sensing and secure military satellite communications.
- The Space Force has requested roughly $7.0–7.1 billion in the DoD FY2027 budget to expand AMTI capabilities and plans second‑ and third‑generation upgrades through the 2030s to strengthen resilient, layered tracking alongside airborne systems.