Northrop Grumman wins $82M drone support contract

Falls Church defense contractor will test and engineer MQ-4C Triton systems

Published March 17, 2021 by Rich Griset

The U.S. Department of Defense announced Monday that it has awarded an $82.9 million contract to Falls Church-based Fortune 500 defense contractor Northrop Grumman Corp. to sustain, test and engineer MQ-4C Triton unmanned aircraft systems for the U.S. Navy.

Under the contract, the company will also provide technical and field support to ensure the drone’s readiness for military intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions. The award also includes logistics, mission control and operator training equipment support and reach-back engineering services for the Triton assets of the Navy and the Australian government. The MQ-4C Triton was developed by Northrop Grumman.

The company is set to receive $61.1 million in initial contract funds consisting of the Navy’s fiscal 2021 aircraft procurement and operation and maintenance funds, plus foreign cooperative project funds. The drone’s prime contractor will perform work through March 2022 at locations within and outside the continental U.S. Naval Air Systems Command is the contracting activity.

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