The US Space Force has opened a new competition to expand the ground network that tracks, monitors and commands government satellites. The solicitation, issued on 16 September and updated on 24 September, follows the termination of an earlier agreement with AeroVironment. Its significance lies in the range of options now on the table: the service is inviting proposals for government-owned equipment, dedicated leased antennas and capacity on shared commercial networks.
The development was reported by SpaceNews. The question for the wider space industry is whether commercially derived infrastructure can add reliable capacity faster than a purpose-built military programme, while meeting the security and availability standards needed to command national-security spacecraft.
A constrained network meets growing demand
The Satellite Control Network (SCN) handles telemetry, tracking and commanding: receiving data about a spacecraft’s condition, determining its position and sending instructions. It also supports launches and early operations. A 2023 Government Accountability Office (GAO) review counted 19 antennas worldwide and more than 450 satellite contacts a day. Across fiscal years 2012–2021, average utilisation was 75%, above the 70% capacity-planning threshold cited by Space Force officials. Those figures describe the period GAO examined; they should not be treated as a current utilisation reading.
When a satellite has a limited window in view of a ground station, competing requests for antenna time become an operational constraint. Extra dishes alone may not solve it. Sites need suitable geography, spectrum rights, secure communications, scheduling software and staff. A network that can allocate contacts across more providers could make existing capacity more useful, provided the interfaces and security controls work in practice.
Three routes to additional capacity
The current procurement notice describes ground entry points and network operations capabilities for spacecraft in multiple orbital regimes. The accompanying public solicitation sets out three areas of interest:
| Approach | What the Space Force would receive | Principal trade-off |
|---|---|---|
| Government-owned, contractor-operated systems | Commercially derived hardware installed at government sites | More control over assets, with site preparation and integration still required |
| Exclusive-use leased antennas | Dedicated capacity at commercial sites | Faster geographic reach may depend on local permissions and the supplier’s infrastructure |
| Antenna as a service | Contacts through a shared commercial network | Flexible coverage requires strong scheduling, isolation and service guarantees |
These are competing procurement paths, not three announced awards. The Space Force’s 16 September strategy announcement also distinguishes buying commercially available systems from leasing commercially operated services. It says candidate hardware can include conventional parabolic dishes, phased-array-fed reflectors and electronically steered arrays. That technology-neutral language broadens the field beyond one antenna design; it does not establish that every option will pass operational testing.
The solicitation uses a two-stage process. Initial white papers are due 15 October 2026 at 2 p.m. Mountain Daylight Time, according to the public notice; selected respondents may then be invited to submit fuller proposals. The notice requires a Secret-level US facility clearance at the white-paper stage and sets further conditions for access to controlled technical material. Those requirements are material barriers for some otherwise capable commercial ground-station operators.
The reset changes the competitive picture
The Space Rapid Capabilities Office originally selected BlueHalo, subsequently acquired by AeroVironment, to develop its BADGER phased-array system. After a stop-work order and unsuccessful contract restructuring, the government moved to terminate the arrangement. AeroVironment’s June investor presentation filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission removed US$1.493 billion of SCAR-related unfunded backlog in its fiscal fourth quarter. That was contingent future work in the company’s backlog, not revenue already earned or cash withdrawn from the programme.
AeroVironment can compete again, but the new framework gives other antenna manufacturers and ground-network operators a route into the requirement. The commercial opportunity is broader than selling hardware: software integration, network operations, maintenance and secure service delivery all affect whether a ground contact can be scheduled and completed. Conversely, a wider bidder pool is only useful if proposals meet the mission’s coverage, resilience and security needs at a sustainable price.
This procurement also sits alongside the Space Force’s Joint Antenna Marketplace, an effort to connect satellite operators with government and commercial antennas. Space Systems Command announced prototype awards to Auria and Sphinx Defense in 2025, and Air & Space Forces Magazine reported an initial satellite contact demonstration that August. A broker can route demand, but it does not by itself create antennas or guarantee that a commercial site can handle a sensitive mission. The two efforts therefore need to converge in actual operations.
What to watch next
The immediate milestone is the October white-paper deadline, followed by invitations, awards and prototype testing. The strongest evidence of progress will be measured contact availability across orbital regimes, successful integration with government scheduling systems, cyber accreditation and the cost of delivered service. The Space Force has opened several ways to buy capacity; it has yet to show which mix can turn that flexibility into dependable satellite control.
