YORBA LINDA, Calif. - L3Harris Technologies' Interstate Electronics Corp. (IEC) business has received a U.S. Navy contract worth $46.85 million for services and support for flight-test instrumentation systems supporting the Trident II Strategic Weapon System.
The work supports flight-test instrumentation used with the Trident II D5 weapon system, a submarine-launched ballistic missile system that the Navy continues to flight-test to evaluate system reliability and accuracy. The Navy conducted four unarmed D5 Life Extension (D5LE) flight tests from an Ohio-class ballistic-missile submarine in September 2025, bringing the cumulative total of successful D5 flight-test launches to 197 at that time.
Test time
The instrumentation effort represents a specialized aerospace test-and-measurement function. A previous SSP acquisition identifies IEC as the design agent and manufacturer of D5 test-instrumentation systems, with responsibilities including technical engineering, logistics, and field support for installing, operating, maintaining, and modifying test-instrumentation subsystems and associated support equipment. A subsequent SSP follow-on contract similarly covered engineering services and support for Navy-owned flight-test instrumentation systems operated in support of Trident II flight tests.
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The new contract comes as the Navy continues to sustain D5LE while developing the next-generation D5 Life Extension 2 (D5LE2) weapon system. SSP says D5LE will provide the foundation for the sea-based weapon system through the 2040s, including as the initial weapon system aboard Columbia-class ballistic-missile submarines. D5LE2 is in engineering and manufacturing development, with initial fleet introduction planned for fiscal 2039.
The Navy's current environmental documentation calls for up to six sea-based D5 tests per year from 2025 through 2028 and up to eight per year from 2029 through 2039. The program also calls for up to 10 land-based D5LE2 test flights from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station between 2032 and 2036.
SSP is also expanding its ground-test infrastructure. In November 2025, SSP said it brought the Strategic Weapons Systems Ashore (SWS Ashore) facility online as a systems-integrated test facility for Trident II D5 weapon-system modernizations and alterations before fleet deployment.
The cost-plus-incentive-fee and cost-plus-fixed-fee contract from Strategic Systems Programs (SSP) includes optional line items that could increase its value to approximately $207.05 million. Work is scheduled to continue through 30 Sept. 2031, at locations in California, Florida, Washington, D.C., Connecticut, Washington state, Georgia, and the United Kingdom.
No funding will be obligated at the time of award. The contract is being awarded subject to the availability of fiscal 2027 funds.
