Northrop Grumman Approved to Produce MDA Missile Test Vehicle

Northrop Grumman has received clearance from the Missile Defense Agency to produce five units of the Modified Ballistic Re-Entry Vehicle-11, an advanced target vehicle developed to test the MDA’s Next Generation Interceptor.

The aerospace and defense company said Thursday that the MBRV-11 will be integrated with intermediate range and intercontinental ballistic missile targets to simulate the advanced missile threats that the NGI is designed to counter.

The vehicles will support five missile defense test demonstrations, with the first flight test planned for 2027.

The approval follows an accelerated 16-month development process that combined system requirements and preliminary design reviews, culminating in the critical design review in October. 

MBRV-11 features a baseline design with four optional enhancement kits, offering flexibility for various mission scenarios.

In February 2024, Northrop and MDA completed the preliminary design review of the NGI capability. Northrop provided a full-scale solid rocket motor, avionics, test hardware, interactive on-site demonstrations and a digital model of the design in virtual reality for evaluation.