V2X has secured a contract valued at $62m to maintain the COBRA DANE radar system in Alaska, which is an integral part of the US Space Force’s capabilities.
The company will be responsible for delivering operational readiness, capability improvements, and engineering support for the radar.
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Positioned at Eareckson Air Station, COBRA DANE has a height of 120ft and a 95ft diameter phased-array face, as well as is capable of detecting and tracking objects as far as 2,000 miles away.
It became fully operational on 1 August 1977, underwent significant modernisation in the early 1990s, and has received several updates since then.
COBRA DANE operates under the jurisdiction of Air Force Space Command and is a government-owned facility. Raytheon, the original developer of the radar system, supplies the necessary personnel for its operation.
It supports the US ballistic missile defence and contributes to space domain awareness by identifying and characterising satellites and space debris in Earth’s orbit.
COBRA DANE’s primary function is to gather radar metric and signature data on foreign ballistic missile events and selected space launches.
This data collection supports treaty monitoring, force modernisation, and missile defence initiatives.
The radar also has secondary missions, which include tracking new foreign launches and monitoring both catalogued and uncatalogued satellites in low-Earth orbit for the Space Domain Awareness (SDA) Operations Cell.
Originally constructed to aid in intelligence gathering for the verification of the SALT II arms limitation treaty, COBRA DANE continues to be an asset for intelligence and defence.
Work under the contract is scheduled for completion by March 2027.
V2X president and CEO Jeremy Wensinger said: “V2X has been the trusted partner in ensuring the continuous operational readiness of COBRA DANE.
“Additionally, V2X has incorporated various engineering enhancement to this essential system, extending its capabilities and readiness. This full-spectrum support emphasises our differentiated capabilities in radar operations, readiness, and commitment to supporting national security by providing persistent space domain awareness and missile defence.”
