Not the satellites but the ground that flies them — $4.5 billion and seventeen years on GPS control
An Air Force contract with Raytheon carrying an obligated value of about $4.495 billion. The description reads GPS ADVANCED CONTROL SEGMENT (OCX) PHASE B BLOCKS 1 AND 2, covering not GPS satellites but the ground system that operates them. The period runs from February 2010 to March 2027, about 17.1 years.
Contract key facts
- RecipientRTX (Raytheon)
- Contract value$4,495,710,624 (≈$4.5B)
- BranchAir Force
- Awarding agencyDepartment of Defense
- Awarding sub-agencyDepartment of the Air Force
- Award typeDEFINITIVE CONTRACT
- Period of performance2010-02-25 〜 2027-03-31
- Contract ID (PIID)FA880710C0001
The amount cited in the write-up ($4,495,410,624) is the figure at the time of writing. After later modifications the record now shows $4,495,710,624 (the details above are current).
Contract scope (original)
GPS ADVANCED CONTROL SEGMENT (OCX) PHASE B BLOCKS 1 AND 2
Key points
- Obligated value is about $4.495 billion; the recipient is Raytheon, the branch is the Air Force, and the period runs February 2010 to March 2027.
- The description covers the GPS advanced control segment — the ground system that operates the satellites, not the satellites themselves.
- A satellite is useful only with ground machinery managing orbit and time and keeping the signal accurate.
- The median duration across the 207 records this site holds as of 2026-09-02 is 10.7 years, substantially below this contract 17.1.
- Splitting development into phases and blocks is a device for absorbing changes in requirements and technology over a long development.
1A satellite launched is not yet usable
Discussion of positioning satellites gathers around the spacecraft. But a satellite is useful only with machinery on the ground that manages its orbit and time, keeps the signal accurate and responds when something goes wrong. That ground machinery is the control segment, and this contract covers the next-generation control system for GPS. When the satellites are renewed, the ground has to be rebuilt too.
2Seventeen years
At 17.1 years the period substantially exceeds the median of 10.7. Developing a control system with large software passes through requirements, design, implementation, test and transition, and has to change over without stopping the service in operation. Unlike satellite hardware, completion is not settled by working alone; verifying safety and availability takes time.
3Proceeding in blocks
PHASE B BLOCKS 1 AND 2 in the description shows development split into phases and blocks. Rather than building the whole at once, functionality is grouped, developed in sections and moved into operation in order. Over a long development, requirements change and technology ages. Working in sections is a device for absorbing that change.
4Where an Air Force contract sits
Of the 207 defense contracts this site holds as of 2026-09-02, 31 carry the Air Force as branch — the fewest against Navy 77, defense-wide 59 and Army 40. Air Force procurement nonetheless spans not only aircraft but space, positioning and communications, so cases like this one, where a ground information system is the object, appear among them. Total outlays on the record are about $90.2 million, 2.0 percent of obligation.
Why it matters
In space procurement, ground information systems can account for as much cost and schedule as the spacecraft. Having to change over without stopping the service in operation is what stretches the development period.
FAQ
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Sources (primary)
This article is an independent organization based on the U.S. official spending data below. Verify the exact, latest details with the official source.
- USAspending (award details)
- Contract ID (PIID)：FA880710C0001