Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (Nasdaq: KTOS) has been awarded a five-year, OTA contract for the Multi-Service Advanced Capability Hypersonic Test Bed (MACH-TB) 2.0 under Task Area 1.
The total value of this award, if all options are exercised over the five-year period, is $1.45 billion. The Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering (OUSD (R&E)) Test Resource Management Center (TRMC) established MACH-TB to support OUSD’s National Hypersonic Initiative 2.0 by creating an affordable flight test bed to rapidly increase hypersonic flight test capacity.
MACH-TB 2.0 will provide an affordable bridge between hypersonic ground tests and system level flight tests. This will reduce overall hypersonic development risks and time and provide rapid transition of innovative hypersonic technologies to the warfighter.
Kratos was awarded the prime role in Task Area 1 Systems Engineering, Integration, and Testing (SEIT), to include integrated subscale, full-scale, and air launch services to address the need to affordably increase hypersonic flight test cadence
Kratos will lead a team of subcontractors that will provide systems engineering, assembly, integration, and test (AI&T), mission planning and execution, and launch services. Key teammates on the Kratos team include Leidos, Rocket Lab, Koda Technologies, Corvid Technologies, Northwind, JRC, Stratolaunch, CFD Research, PAR Systems, University of Minnesota, and Purdue University among many others.
George Rumford, Director of the Test Resource Management Center, said, “We are excited to continue the success of the MACH-TB program with this award. MACH-TB is an essential tool to accelerate science and technology experiments into next generation, leap-ahead hypersonic capabilities for our nation.”
“We are honored to be selected to be part of the MACH-TB 2.0 integrated team. The nation is at a critical point in the need for rapid and affordable hypersonic flight testing to quickly develop and field hypersonic technologies and the MACH-TB program is filling that need,” said Michael Johns, Senior Vice President of Kratos SRE.
Dave Carter, President of Kratos Defense and Rocket Support Services Division, said, “With the recent successes of our low-cost Erinyes Hypersonic Flyer and Zeus Solid Rocket Motors, Kratos is a leader in the testing and fielding of hypersonic systems. We are very excited to bring this unmatched expertise to the MACH-TB 2.0 program.”
Eric DeMarco, President & CEO of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc., said, “Kratos is honored to receive the largest contract award in our company’s history, a testament of the value Kratos’ employees and team bring both to our Company and United States National Security. This programmatic milestone underscores our unwavering commitment to making upfront investments for rapidly developing, and being first to market with affordable, mission-critical solutions that meet the evolving needs of the warfighter. The MACH-TB 2.0 program award is an important element of Kratos’ future year organic growth forecast and expectation.”