Two nuclear-armed sea-launched cruise missile (SLCM-N) launch task area agreements were awarded to Northrop Grumman Mission Systems, a division of the defense company, and Pacific Engineering.
The award was announced on the National Security Technology Accelerator (NSTXL) contracting platform. It will be funded by the Strategic & Spectrum Missions Advanced Resilient Trusted Systems Other Transaction Authority consortium. The consortium also funded five other SLCM-N task area agreements Aug. 22.
According to the press release, the Northrop division and Pacific Engineering would begin developing the SLCM-N launcher subsystem, which will integrate a tube to connect the subsystem to the submarine’s shipboard systems.
A planned nuclear-armed, sea-launched cruise missile (SLCM-N) would be deployed on the Virginia-class submarines and would include a variant of the W80-4 air-launched cruise missile warhead. The W80-4 is something the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) is already working on.
The agreement is worth $26.2 million and the work is expected to be complete by September 2026, according to a Navy press release from last month.