The Space Force has locked in a $981 million contract pool spread across 15 companies to build the next generation of space training systems, with the acquisition unit steering the effort based in Colorado Springs. The deal, known as NITE-STAR, was awarded July 30 and is designed to give Guardians realistic virtual and live ranges to rehearse against real-world threats in orbit.
Space Systems Command's System Delta 81 formally established the NITE-STAR contract vehicle on July 31 to build a specialized pool of contractors supporting the Operational Test and Training Infrastructure enterprise, according to Military Aerospace. The contract marks a structural shift for the branch, moving away from one-off rapid acquisition deals toward a 10-year, multi-award structure split into two five-year ordering periods meant to build high-fidelity virtual and live ranges, as reported by Air & Space Forces Magazine. As the Denver Gazette first reported, the indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity contract lets the government place orders for individual requirements as they arise, distributing work among the 15 firms as needed.
Why the Space Force Says It Can't Wait
Space Force Combat Forces Command head Gen. Greg Gagnon said in July that key space mission areas face critical gaps because of a shortage of simulators, instructors, and dedicated training facilities needed to prepare Guardians for contested space operations, according to Breaking Defense. Craig Hackbarth said the effort sets the foundation for rapidly advancing and integrating test and training tools for Space Force Guardians, per the Denver Gazette's reporting. NITE-STAR is meant to build a broad, diverse industrial partnership that promotes continuous competition and innovation, and its capability development is intended to accelerate test and training tools across the entire architecture, available to the whole OTTI enterprise.
The Department of the Air Force published an official procurement notice, FA2553-26-R-B001, on SAM.gov this month, laying out formal federal guidelines for hardware, modeling, simulation, and software task order requests, according to HigherGov. NITE-STAR stands for the National Space Test and Training Complex Innovative Technology and Engineering's Space Test and Range, and it's meant to let the Space Force rapidly acquire a wide range of solutions rather than negotiating each contract from scratch.
Colorado Firms Angle for Early Task Orders
Denver-headquartered York Space Systems announced its selection as a NITE-STAR contractor and said its work will pair its satellite platforms with the global ground network run by its subsidiary, ATLAS Space Operations, per a company release cited by Business Wire. York will partner with Space Systems Command as NITE-STAR comes online, and Melanie Preisser said the company will help support a program that sharpens how U.S. space operators train against real-world threats, according to the Denver Gazette. Rocket Lab Corporation separately announced it was onboarded to the program, positioning the launch and satellite manufacturer to compete for task orders spanning satellite development, space software, digital environments, and ground systems, per GlobeNewswire.
The 15 companies tapped for NITE-STAR all have a workforce presence in Colorado, per the Denver Gazette's reporting. That roster includes major defense names with deep Colorado Springs roots: Parsons, Amentum, L3Harris Technologies, Northrop Grumman, Redwire Space Missions, and Boeing all maintain a significant local presence. Amentum alone employs 1,300 people in the city, while Boeing's Colorado Springs workforce, focused on defense and national security, missile defense, space operations support, and command and control missions, runs between 300 and 400 people. Other selected firms are headquartered elsewhere in the state, including Louisville-based Sierra Space, Littleton-based Lockheed Martin Space, and Broomfield-based BAE Space Mission Systems, formerly known as Ball Aerospace.
Peterson's Acquisition Unit Gets New Leadership
System Delta 81, the unit overseeing NITE-STAR, was activated at Peterson Space Force Base in Colorado Springs on September 9, 2025, to unify acquisition and training operations, according to Defense Daily. U.S. Space Force Col. Margaret Sullivan assumed command of the unit during a change-of-command ceremony at Peterson earlier this month, succeeding founding commander Col. Corey Klopstein, per Space Systems Command.
Colorado Springs remains an important hub of space operations for the U.S. military, home to more than half of the Space Force's active deltas, North American Aerospace Defense Command, and U.S. Northern Command. Space Command itself, which brings together service members from across the military branches to protect U.S. satellites roughly 62 miles above Earth, was previously headquartered in the city. Those satellites enable communications, provide GPS, monitor missile attacks, and collect intelligence for the country.
Space Command's Relocation Looms Over the Backdrop
President Donald Trump ordered Space Command relocated to Huntsville, Alabama, in 2025, a move estimated to cost Colorado Springs roughly 1,000 jobs. Roughly 100 Space Command personnel had relocated to Redstone Arsenal as of August 13, per Space News. Even so, the NITE-STAR award underscores that Colorado Springs remains a central technical and acquisition engine for space operations even as political decisions steer some personnel elsewhere, a tension Hoodline has previously reported on.
The contract's arrival also fits a broader pattern of expanding Space Force investment across Colorado's aerospace corridor. The state recently completed a $161 million infrastructure project connecting Peterson, Schriever Space Force Base, Fort Carson, and Cheyenne Mountain, work Hoodline covered as it wrapped up this month. The Space Force also recently raised a Broomfield startup's SBIR Phase III contract ceiling from $7 million to $100 million for space resupply and launch technologies, another sign of the region's deepening ties to military space procurement.
