BAE Systems wins $247M Space Force contract

Arlington company to design, manufacture GPS receivers

Published February 18, 2021 by Sydney Lake

Arlington-based defense contractor BAE Systems announced Wednesday it has received a $247 million U.S. Space Force contract to design and manufacture an advanced GPS receiver and semiconductor.

Work on the contract will be performed for the Space Force’s Space and Missile Systems Center. The technology will provide positioning, navigation and timing capabilities during missions.

“This program enables us to further develop our core M-Code technology to deliver high-performance, next-generation GPS capabilities,” Greg Wild, director of navigation and sensor systems at BAE Systems, said in a statement. “Our M-Code receiver and next-gen [application-specific integrated circuit] will enable secure and reliable military GPS capabilities in a broader range of platforms.”

BAE Systems’ precision strike business has developed more than 1.5 million GPS devices on more than 280 platforms worldwide. Work on the contract will be performed in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

BAE Systems Inc. is an independent U.S. subsidiary of England-based BAE Systems plc, one of Europe’s top defense contractors. BAE Systems Inc. employs approximately 35,100 people across the U.S., U.K., Sweden and Israel. The company generated $11.4 billion in 2019 sales.