AST SpaceMobile has secured a $30-million contract to demonstrate low-latency tactical satellite communications for the US Space Development Agency (SDA).
The deal falls under the agency’s Europa Track 2 solicitation, which aims to field reliable, commercial-off-the-shelf capabilities in low Earth orbit in support of military missions on the ground.
The award for this initiative was facilitated through the Hybrid Acquisition for Proliferated Low Earth Orbit (HALO) program, which fast-tracks assembly, trials, and deployment of experimental satellites for defense applications.
Utilizing the BlueBird Constellation
Under the project, AST will use its BlueBird satellite constellation to assess resilient connectivity between military radios and government devices.
Each BlueBird features a 2,400-square-foot (223-square-meter) phased array antenna and up to 5G broadband link, enabling sustained coverage and up to 120 Megabytes of transfer speed for voice, data, and video.
Alongside the tests, AST said it will showcase the delivery of data products as a service to SDA.
The Texas-based company is expected to complete the trials by December 2027.
“Selection for SDA’s Europa Track 2 program validates AST SpaceMobile’s ability to rapidly operationalize commercial space capabilities for national security,” said Chris Ivory, CEO of AST SpaceMobile USA.
For Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture
The award aims to inform future operational tranches of SDA’s Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture (PWSA), a broader satellite network to support missile warning, tracking, and data transport for the US joint forces.
“The acquisition flexibility afforded by the HALO Europa program leverages commercial investments and enables learning at speed,” SDA Acting Director Gurpartap Sandhoo commented.
“We are now using commercial solutions to quickly demonstrate mission utility, reduce risk for the operational layers of future tranches of the PWSA, and accelerate the delivery of cutting-edge capability to the warfighter.”
