WASHINGTON — The U.S. Navy has awarded Lockheed Martin Space a $76.56 million contract modification for continued design and development of the Trident II D5 Life Extension 2 (D5LE2) program.
The $76,562,774 cost-plus-incentive-fee modification, designated P00032 under existing contract N0003024C0100, was announced on September 18, 2026. The work is being managed by the Navy’s Strategic Systems Programs (SSP) and is scheduled to continue through September 30, 2030.
Lockheed Martin’s Titusville, Florida, facility is the primary contractor. About 51 percent of the work will be performed in Denver, Colorado, with additional work in Elkton, Maryland (9 percent), Montville, New Jersey (7 percent), Greeneville, Tennessee (6 percent), and Cape Canaveral, Florida (5 percent). The remaining work will be carried out at locations including Pittsfield, Massachusetts; Sunnyvale, California; Titusville, Florida; Mason, Ohio; Lancaster, Pennsylvania; Kings Bay, Georgia; Louisville, Kentucky, and other sites.
The Navy is obligating the full $76.56 million from fiscal year 2026 weapons procurement funds. The contract was awarded on a sole-source basis under 10 U.S. Code 2304(a)(1), with Lockheed Martin being the only company to submit a proposal. SSP in Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity.
D5LE2 to Support Future Submarines
The Trident II D5 is the submarine-launched ballistic missile component of the U.S. nuclear triad. It entered service in 1990, while its first major life-extension program, D5LE, was completed in 2017.
The D5LE2 program is intended to address aging components and keep the missile system viable through approximately 2084. The existing missile weighs about 130,000 pounds (59,000 kg), has a range of roughly 4,000 nautical miles (7,400 km) and reaches speeds reported to exceed Mach 20. It can carry different payload configurations, including W76 and W88 nuclear warheads.
The missile currently operates aboard U.S. Ohio-class and UK Vanguard-class ballistic missile submarines. The D5LE2 is being developed for the replacement Columbia-class submarines of the U.S. Navy and the future Dreadnought-class submarines of the Royal Navy, making it a joint U.S.-UK modernization effort under the Polaris Sales Agreement.
Earlier Contracts and Infrastructure
The latest award follows a $383 million modification in January 2025 to begin D5LE2 design and development, followed by an $850 million modification announced in April 2026. Additional smaller contract modifications have also supported the program.
Lockheed Martin is constructing an approximately 225,000-square-foot production facility in Titusville, which is expected to open in 2027. The Navy is also building a 130,000-square-foot Engineering Test Facility at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Groundbreaking took place in February 2026, with completion scheduled for January 2028. The approximately $166 million project was awarded to Walsh Federal and will support prototyping, testing and development of support equipment and flight hardware.
Meanwhile, the Navy continues testing the existing Trident II D5LE system. Between September 17 and 21, 2025, four unarmed D5LE test flights were conducted from an Ohio-class submarine off Florida. The tests brought the total number of successful Trident II D5 flight tests to 197. Navy officials described the launches as scheduled tests that confirmed the continued reliability of the existing sea-based deterrent while D5LE2 development continues.
——— End of Article ———
