REDONDO BEACH, Calif. — Northrop Grumman announced July 5, 2022, that it has selected Airbus U.S. Space & Defense Inc. as the commercial provider of satellite platforms for its proliferated-LEO constellation.

Under the terms of the contract, Airbus U.S. will supply 42 satellite “bus” platforms, as well as support vehicle assembly, integration and testing.

The Space Development Agency selected Northrop Grumman in February to develop and field a portion of its Tranche 1 Transport Layer (T1TL) constellation. The T1TL network will deliver persistent, secure connectivity for the U.S. military and serve as a critical element for Joint All-Domain Command and Control.

“The addition of Airbus U.S. as one of our key commercial suppliers complements our end-to-end satellite system integration and heritage communication mission expertise,” said Blake Bullock, vice president, communication systems, strategic space systems, Northrop Grumman.

In May, Northrop Grumman announced the selection of Mynaric and Innoflight as its suppliers for laser communications and encryption, decryption capabilities.

“The SDA Tranche 1 Transport Layer is a critical national security program, and we are honored to support Northrop Grumman and the Space Development Agency,” said Rob Geckle, president and CEO of Airbus U.S. Space and Defense. “This award underscores Airbus U.S.’s mission to develop and deliver, in the U.S., technology critical to the U.S. warfighter,” he added.