HILL AIR FORCE BASE, Utah — The U.S. Air Force has awarded Northrop Grumman an $86.1 million sole-source task order to provide program management, maintenance, sustaining engineering and support services for the Remote Visual Assessment (RVA) program, which provides camera and sensor-based surveillance at facilities associated with the Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) system.
The Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center at Hill Air Force Base, Utah, is the contracting activity for the award. The task order is expected to run through September 2031.
Maintaining the Remote Visual Assessment system
The RVA program provides a ground-based surveillance network that allows Air Force personnel to visually assess activity at Minuteman III launch facilities and other related sites.
The system is particularly useful because Minuteman III launch facilities are distributed across large areas of the northern United States. When a security sensor generates an alert, personnel can use the RVA camera network to assess activity remotely rather than immediately sending personnel to the affected location.
This provides security personnel with visual information for determining whether an alert requires a response.
The current task order covers the continued operation and sustainment of the camera and sensor infrastructure, including program management, routine maintenance, sustaining engineering and other support services.
Work across four Air Force locations
Maintenance and engineering activities under the task order will be carried out at Hill Air Force Base in Utah and at the three Air Force bases responsible for the Minuteman III missile fields:
- F.E. Warren Air Force Base, Wyoming
- Malmstrom Air Force Base, Montana
- Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota
These installations support the dispersed Minuteman III ICBM force located across the northern United States.
$15.2 million obligated initially
The task order has a total potential value of $86.1 million. At the time of the award, the Air Force obligated $15.2 million in fiscal year 2026 procurement funds.
The remaining funding is expected to be provided incrementally as work under the task order progresses.
The award was made through a sole-source acquisition and falls under the broader Ground Subsystems Support Contract (GSSC) effort supporting the Minuteman III system.
Northrop Grumman has been involved in sustaining the ground subsystems of the Minuteman III system for years. The company's GSSC work includes engineering and field support intended to maintain the reliability and security of the ground-based ICBM system.
One report identifies the task order as FA8214-26-F-B017.
Supporting the Minuteman III during the transition to Sentinel
The Minuteman III is the current U.S. land-based ICBM and forms the ground-based component of the country's nuclear triad. Northrop Grumman describes the system as having been deployed since the 1970s and continues to support its sustainment.
The Air Force is also developing the LGM-35A Sentinel as the replacement for Minuteman III. Sentinel is intended to modernize the ground-based component of the U.S. nuclear triad, including the missile and associated ground infrastructure.
Until the replacement system is fielded, maintaining the existing Minuteman III ground infrastructure remains part of the Air Force's ongoing sustainment effort.
The new $86.1 million task order therefore continues support for an existing surveillance capability used to monitor activity around Minuteman III facilities while the United States works toward its next-generation ICBM system.
——— End of Article ———
