Northrop Grumman Targets 25,000 Rocket Motors by 2029 as It Presses for Longer Pentagon Contracts
Updated
Updated · SpaceNews · Jun 19
Northrop Grumman Targets 25,000 Rocket Motors by 2029 as It Presses for Longer Pentagon Contracts
2 articles · Updated · SpaceNews · Jun 19
Summary
Northrop Grumman said it can raise solid rocket motor output from about 13,000 in 2024 to roughly 25,000 a year by 2029, arguing production capacity is not the main constraint.
More than $1 billion of Northrop’s recent spending has gone to solid rocket motors, but the company said annual appropriations and short contracts leave lower-tier suppliers without enough certainty to expand plants, materials and hiring.
James Kalberer said Northrop is already producing 30 million pounds of propellant and has capacity for 50 million pounds, while its SMART Demo program has cut qualification timelines for new technologies and vendors to 12-18 months from as long as three years.
The push comes as the Pentagon seeks a sharp missile-production increase and CSIS has warned solid rocket motors remain a bottleneck, even after multiyear munitions authorities and a $1 billion April investment in L3Harris’s propulsion business.
Northrop’s position carries added weight because it is one of only two dominant U.S. solid rocket motor suppliers, even as its booster business faces scrutiny after the Space Force paused Vulcan launches following a second anomaly.
As government cash fuels its rival, can Northrop Grumman's private spending alone win the US rocket motor race?
With a key Chinese import ban looming, how will the Pentagon prevent its missile production lines from going dark?
Northrop Grumman’s $94M SRM Investment: Addressing Supply Chain Bottlenecks and Global Defense Needs in 2026
Overview
Northrop Grumman recently secured a major $94.3 million contract with the U.S. Navy for solid rocket motors, highlighting the urgent demand for advanced propulsion systems and reinforcing the company’s key role in national defense. This move is part of a broader global trend, as Northrop Grumman expands internationally—including new partnerships with the Australian Government—to meet rising worldwide needs for reliable rocket motor technology. These developments reflect the growing importance of strategic partnerships and advanced propulsion solutions, driven by defense modernization and the need for robust, dependable systems in an increasingly complex geopolitical environment.