AFSCN
The twin radomes of the Colorado Tracking Station at Schriever Air Force Base, Colorado, part of the Air Force Satellite Control Network. Credit: U.S. Air Force/Staff Sgt. Don Branum

WASHINGTON  — An industry team led by CACI International has won a contract worth as much as $445 million to consolidate work on the Air Force’s main satellite control network, according to a June 13 announcement from the Pentagon.

The contract, known as CAMMO — short for Consolidated Air Force Satellite Control Network Modifications, Maintenance and Operations — is one of several consolidation contracts planned by the Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center as it copes with shrinking budgets. The deal is also one of the largest space contracts the Air Force expects to award this year.

CACI won a one-year, fixed-price incentive based contract worth $43 million for the work, the announcement said. With options, the contract could run through 2023 and be worth as much as $445 million, the announcement said.

CAMMO will combine three existing contracts: the Air Force Satellite Control Network Contract, currently held by Honeywell Technology Solutions Inc. of Columbia, Maryland; the Engineering Development and Sustainment contract, now held by Lockheed Martin Information Systems & Global Solutions of Herndon, Virginia ; and the Network Space Operations and Maintenance contract, held by Harris Corp. of Melbourne, Florida. Those contracts cover most of the activities associated with operating a large portion of the Air Force’s satellite fleet, including data uplink and downlink, command and control, communications, software and testing at eight sites throughout the world.

“CAMMO combines operations, maintenance, and sustainment from three contracts into a single vertically integrated contract vehicle,” said Lt. Gen. Samuel Greaves, commander of the Air Force’s Space and Missile Systems Center, said in a June 13 press release. “By vertically integrating AFSCN contracted work, the government expects economies of scale, economies of scope, and productivity gains; as well as efficiencies compelled by competition resulting in significant projected savings.”

The Air Force formally awarded the CAMMO contract to L-3 National Security Solutions of Colorado Springs, Colorado, but CACI of Arlington, Virginia purchased that division of L-3 in February for $550 million.

The CACI industry team includes Harris IT Services of Dulles, Virginia and five other companies.

The Pentagon announcement said the Air Force received three other bids. Those companies are thought to be:

  • Honeywell Technology Solutions of Columbia, Maryland.
  • Lockheed Martin Information Systems and Global Solutions of
  • Exelis Information Systems Inc. of McLean, Virginia, which is now owned by Harris Corp.

Mike Gruss covers military space issues, including the U.S. Air Force and Missile Defense Agency, for SpaceNews. He is a graduate of Miami University in Oxford, Ohio.