Australian Government Picks Lockheed Martin as Preferred MILSATCOM System Bidder

The Australian government has selected Lockheed Martin as the preferred bidder for the Project JP9102 Australian Defence Satellite Communication System.

According to Lockheed Martin, its JP9102 proposal will feature security solutions against anti-satellite and electronic warfare threats. JP9102 is a multibillion-dollar project that would give the Australian Defence Force a military satellite communications system with secure connectivity and agile information-sharing capabilities, Lockheed said Monday.

Robert Lightfoot, executive vice president of Lockheed Martin Space and a speaker at the Potomac Officers Club’s Space: Innovations, Programs & Policies Summit in 2017, said the company will deliver its operationally proven system to ensure that the envisioned MILSATCOM constellation meets coverage, capacity, resilience and extensibility.

Lockheed will collaborate with a team of Australian companies to work on the ground segments of JP9102. The company will also use its expertise in space-based mission solutions to meet the Australian government’s expectations.

Lockheed and the Victorian government also agreed to establish the state as the central hub for JP9102. The deal would create hundreds of jobs in the space industry for the state.