Mary-Louise Hoffman
Northrop Grumman CEO Kathy Warden said the company has moved to invest in people and facilities in anticipation of receiving a potential $85B contract to build the U.S. Air Force’s Ground-Based Strategic Deterrent weapon system, the Washington Business Journal reported Thursday.
Northrop and Boeing initially received contracts from the military service in August 2017 to conduct GBSD technology maturation and risk reduction efforts. In December 2019, the latter company decided not to bid for the contract to replace the Minuteman III intercontinenal ballistic missile system.
The Air Force said last month it would award the contract by the fourth quarter of the government’s 2020 fiscal year.
Warden, a 2020 Wash100 Award recipient, told analysts Thursday in an earnings call that Northrop aims to ensure that it is prepared to begin work if the service branch accelerates the contracting process.
The possible GBSD award is projected to bring in $250M in sales for the company during the program’s first year.
