SpaceX wins $4 billion Space Force contract for satellites that target 'airborne threats' anywhere on Earth

The U.S Space Force has awarded SpaceX $4.16 billion to help the military track airborne targets using satellites. The massive contract is under the Space-Based Airborne Moving Target Indicator (SB-AMTI) program, which will add space systems to the U.S. military's tracking capabilities. SpaceX is the first of nine companies that Space Force has disclosed for the SB-AMTI vendor pool. The other eight companies have yet to be publicly announced. Space Force announced the SpaceX contract on May 29, stating that the award is for a satellite constellation that can "track and target airborne threats globally." The idea is that satellites can help with tracking in places where it could be dangerous for aircraft, which the military has long used for airborne tracking capabilities. The service aims to get an SB-AMTI satellite constellation up and running by 2028. "By focusing these capabilities to the space domain, we are providing the Joint Force with sustained battlespace awareness of contested airspace," USSF Col. Ryan Frazier, acting Space Force portfolio acquisition executive for SBST, said in a statement . "We are beginning development and integration efforts immediately to meet the program's rapid deployment milestones and address emerging national security requirements." Space Force described the SB-AMTI architecture as a "complex system-of-systems," which will integrate space-based sensors with fast, secure communication, as well as data processing technologies on the ground. …