{"id":8648,"date":"2026-04-01T16:15:07","date_gmt":"2026-04-01T16:15:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sawahsolutions.com\/range\/defense-business-brief-the-navys-musv-pivot-nga-taps-vantor-for-2-3m-spy-satellite-contract-and-a-bit-more\/"},"modified":"2026-04-01T16:15:07","modified_gmt":"2026-04-01T16:15:07","slug":"defense-business-brief-the-navys-musv-pivot-nga-taps-vantor-for-2-3m-spy-satellite-contract-and-a-bit-more","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sawahsolutions.com\/range\/defense-business-brief-the-navys-musv-pivot-nga-taps-vantor-for-2-3m-spy-satellite-contract-and-a-bit-more\/","title":{"rendered":"Defense Business Brief: The Navy\u2019s MUSV pivot; NGA taps Vantor for $2.3M spy satellite contract; and a bit more"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The Navy doesn\u2019t want robot boat prototypes, so it nixed its existing unmanned surface vehicle program in favor of an already-made-or-being-built strategy. That move rattled industry last week, but it could bring the Navy closer to getting what it says it needs in medium unmanned surface vessels.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Wargames showed the larger Modular Attack Surface Craft vehicle as having \u201ctoo short a range (2,500 [nautical miles]) to be useful, and sometimes it was hard to effectively use its 16 missiles before the vessel was destroyed by counter-battery fire,\u201d said Bryan Clark, who leads the Hudson Institute\u2019s Center for Defense Concepts and Technology. But the service\u2019s request for the vehicle \u201cdidn\u2019t prioritize range, which ends up being the most important characteristic.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Navy canceled the MASC\u2014Modular Attack Surface Craft\u2014program a year after it started and several companies were building vessels in anticipation of an award expected in late 2025.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But this latest pivot to a marketplace format may give the Navy a chance to pick from existing technologies and allow defense tech companies to show what they can do. The new approach also means the Navy won\u2019t have to buy prototypes and instead can focus on mature technologies, a Navy official told Defense One<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think the better approach is for industry to formulate their ideas on Navy MUSV concepts and propose them to the Navy,\u201d which \u201ccan assess them through modeling and simulation to identify which systems and use cases are most effective,\u201d Clark said.<\/p>\n

The new solicitation for MUSVs tweaks the requirements\u2014such as asking for longer range\u2014and supplants the previous program in favor of a marketplace approach that will serve as a \u201cregular and recurring competitive environment,\u201d the Navy official said via email.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cMarket research suggests that there are many companies capable [of entering] the marketplace, ranging from start-ups to established shipbuilding companies,\u201d the official said. \u201cThe Navy is eager to hear from any and all of these competitors. The selected MUSVs will be driven by mission requirements.\u00a0 We will procure as many MUSVs in different configurations as required to meet Fleet needs.\u201d<\/p>\n

But while some defense tech companies Defense One<\/em> spoke to support the changes, there was also frustration, particularly with the high upfront costs of the new solicitation requiring companies to build or present an autonomous boat that can ultimately handle performance tests\u2014such as avoiding collisions with another vessel sans docking.<\/p>\n

When asked about concerns that only companies with major financial backing would be able to compete, the Navy stressed its commitment to fostering competition.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Navy has been engaging with venture capitalists and tech investors for nearly a year, expressing the Navy\u2019s demand signal. Armed with information about the Navy\u2019s needs and requirements, these investors are using that knowledge to expand their portfolios,\u201d the official said, naming the Pentagon\u2019s Office of Strategic Capital as a resource for interested vendors.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Welcome<\/strong><\/p>\n

You\u2019ve reached the Defense Business Brief, where we dig into what the Pentagon buys, who they\u2019re buying from, and why. Send along your tips, feedback, and song recommendations to lwilliams@defenseone.com<\/strong>. Check out the Defense Business Brief archive here<\/strong>, and tell your friends to subscribe<\/strong>!<\/p>\n

All about space awareness. <\/strong>The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency awarded $2.3 million to Vantor to detect and analyze priority space objects in low Earth orbit in near-real time. The contract for NGA\u2019s Luno B program. The work is already underway and provides automated analysis, which is typically a manual process, and alerts NGA of irregularities.\u00a0<\/p>\n