“The Department of Defense has awarded two contracts to Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation and Lockheed Martin Corporation in support of the Next Generation Interceptor (NGI) program … With an estimated maximum value of $1.6 billion through the fiscal year 2022,” the release said on Tuesday.
The contract awards are structured to carry two designs into the technology development and risk reduction phase of the acquisition program to reduce technical and schedule risk, the Defense Department explained.
“Today’s awards are an important step in modernizing our Missile Defense System. NGI plays an important role in our homeland defense, and our acquisition strategy is ensuring the department maximizes innovation to keep pace with rapidly advancing threats,” Stacy Cummings, performing the duties of Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, said.
NGI is an advanced interceptor designed to protect the United States against intercontinental ballistic missile attack and the Defense Department will uphold “fly before you buy” principles to ensure the overall system and components have been rigorously flight-tested before making any procurement decisions, the release said.
