Lockheed Martin has secured a $514 million contract from the U.S. Space Force to build two more GPS IIIF navigation satellites, bringing its total commitment under the next-generation program to 14 spacecraft and advancing one of the most consequential modernizations of the Global Positioning System in decades.
What the contract covers
Announced from Denver on June 15, 2026, the award funds GPS IIIF Space Vehicles 23 and 24. The U.S. Space Force is modernizing a constellation in which many legacy satellites are operating past their intended design life, and the new birds are engineered to keep precise positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) flowing to both military and civilian users in increasingly contested conditions.
A leap in resiliency and anti-jam protection
The headline capability is Regional Military Protection, which Lockheed Martin says delivers a 63-fold increase in anti-jam performance so warfighters can hold a strong GPS signal even when adversaries try to deny it. The IIIF satellites also add M-Code-enabled secure signals and a fully digital navigation payload that improves accuracy and reliability. Civilian users benefit too, with the modern L1C and L5 signals broadcast at greater accuracy underpinning everything from banking and telecommunications to emergency response and everyday navigation.
Built on the LM2100 Combat Bus
Starting with SV13, GPS IIIF spacecraft are built on the evolved LM2100 Combat Bus, which adds cyber-hardening, more spacecraft power and headroom for future payloads. Lockheed Martin has already completed the core-mate milestone for three IIIF satellites and was recently awarded a separate $105 million contract to continue modernizing the GPS ground segment. The company is using augmented reality and digital twins at its Denver-area facilities to accelerate build rates.
The deal lands amid a busy stretch for national-security space. For more context, see our coverage of Open Cosmos winning Spain's Atlantic constellation, Katalyst's Swift Observatory rescue mission, and Voyager Technologies' acquisition of Astrobotic.
Reporting based on coverage from Lockheed Martin.