Northrop Takes $91 Million Vulcan Motor Charge as Redesign Deliveries Slip to Year-End
Updated
Updated · SpaceNews · Jul 21
Northrop Takes $91 Million Vulcan Motor Charge as Redesign Deliveries Slip to Year-End
1 articles · Updated · SpaceNews · Jul 21
Summary
$91 million in second-quarter charges hit Northrop Grumman's GEM 63XL program, adding to a $71 million first-quarter charge tied to Vulcan solid rocket boosters.
A February Vulcan launch suffered a significant booster performance anomaly, prompting corrective actions and a component redesign that Northrop said has passed a static-fire test.
Year-end is now the target for delivering redesigned motors, leaving Vulcan grounded since February with ULA still not disclosing a return-to-flight date.
Space Force officials said in April they were considering Vulcan launches without solid boosters, while Northrop still expects stronger second-half space sales from national security work and improved GEM 63XL performance.
Northrop also reported weaker second-quarter performance on NASA's HALO module and said it is restructuring that contract, reducing 2026 revenue but extending work under NASA's revised lunar plans.