PITTSFIELD, Mass. - General Dynamics Mission Systems Inc. in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, is receiving a $194.1 million U.S. Navy contract modification for technical and engineering support of the fire-control subsystem for the Nuclear-Armed, Sea-Launched Cruise Missile (SLCM-N) program.
The cost-plus-fixed-fee modification, valued at $194,139,485 including optional line items, modifies a previously awarded unpriced letter contract. General Dynamics Mission Systems in Pittsfield, Mass., will perform the work and account for about 75 percent of the effort, while the remaining 25 percent will be performed in Manassas, Va.
The SLCM-N fire-control effort is part of a broader weapons-system development program that the Navy plans to integrate aboard Virginia-class attack submarines in the 2030s. The Navy says SLCM-N is being developed for Virginia-class submarines equipped with the Virginia Payload Module (VPM), which contains multiple Virginia Payload Tubes (VPTs). The SLCM-N launcher subsystem is being developed to integrate with a VPT and connect the missile subsystem with the submarine's shipboard systems.
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The Navy awarded prototype agreements in September 2025 to Northrop Grumman Mission Systems and Pacific Engineering Inc. to develop and fabricate the SLCM-N launcher and canister. The launcher and canister work is part of the effort to develop the interfaces between the missile, submarine launch system, and shipboard systems.
General Dynamics Mission Systems brings extensive submarine strategic-weapon fire-control experience to the SLCM-N effort. The company says it has designed, produced, installed, and sustained fire-control systems for the Polaris, Poseidon, Trident I, and Trident II submarine-launched ballistic missile programs for more than 70 years. GDMS is also responsible for development, production, and installation support for the Trident II fire-control systems aboard the Navy's Ohio- and Columbia-class ballistic-missile submarines.
The SLCM-N program has received increased congressional support and accelerated development requirements in recent years. The FY2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) authorized additional funding for the program and requires a limited number of SLCM-N assets to enable limited operational deployment no later than 30 Sept. 2032.
The current contract modification provides $135.3 million in fiscal 2025 Navy research, development, test, and evaluation funding. The work is expected to be completed by 30 Sept. 2028.
