SpaceX Wins $2.29 Billion Space Force Contract for Data Network
By Luke Juricic
The U.S. Space Force awarded SpaceX a $2.29 billion contract today to develop the Space Data Network Backbone, a satellite constellation designed to provide secure, high-speed global data transport for military operations. The Space Force competitively awarded the Firm-Fixed-Price Other Transaction Authority agreement delivery order to SpaceX for the SDN Backbone program.
The SDN Backbone is a proliferated low Earth orbit satellite constellation that functions as an integrated network, providing high-capacity, low-latency data transport for the Joint Force. The contract requires SpaceX to deliver a fully operational prototype capability by the end of 2027. The network will feature an expanded optically interconnected mesh of satellites delivering worldwide tactical communications and broadband communication services.
The Space Force recently established the SDN consortium to work with industrial partners on complex integration and architectural challenges. The collaborative consortium will expand its participants over the summer and is working across multiple vendors to deliver a unified network architecture and demonstrate advanced communications capabilities.
The SDN Backbone will work alongside the Space Development Agency’s Transport Layer and will be responsible for high throughput, low latency data backhaul. The systems will form a unified and open architecture to provide critical data transport for Department of Defense missions.
SpaceX filed its S-1 for an initial public offering targeted for June 12, 2026, trading on the Nasdaq under ticker symbol NASDAQ: SPCX. The offering could raise up to $75 billion and is projected to value the company between $1.7 trillion and $2 trillion.
