The Missile Defense Agency has awarded 340 companies positions under the potential 10-year, $151 billion Scalable Homeland Innovative Enterprise Layered Defense, or SHIELD, multiple-award contract vehicle, expanding the pool to more than 2,400 awardees.
SAIC, one of the latest additions to the SHIELD pool, is a major sponsor of the Potomac Officers Club’s 2026 Defense R&D Summit on Jan. 29. Book your seat now to hear about the future of defense from top military and GovCon leaders such as SAIC’s Vincent DiFronzo and Mark Luncher.
The Department of War said Thursday that the latest awards build on MDA’s initial announcement of 1,014 awards on Dec. 2, followed by a second tranche of 1,086 awards unveiled Dec. 18.
Which Companies Were Added to the SHIELD Contract?
The third batch of SHIELD awardees, announced through a notice published on SAM.gov, includes:
- SAIC
- BWXT Technical Services Group
- Chugach Intelligence Solutions
- General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems
- HawkEye 360
- LeoLabs Federal
- Mattermost
- Maxar Space
- AeroVironment
- BlueHalo
- Blue Origin
- Firefly Aerospace
- General Atomics
- Honeywell
- IonQ
- Kratos Defense & Rocket Support Services
- L3Harris Technologies
- SES Space and Defense
What Is the SHIELD Contract?
SHIELD is an indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract that provides MDA and other Department of War entities with a flexible enterprise vehicle designed to accelerate acquisition timelines. It supports a wide range of mission areas intended to fast-track the delivery of advanced defense capabilities to the warfighter. The project also prioritizes the use of artificial intelligence, machine learning, digital engineering, open systems architectures, model-based systems engineering and agile acquisition processes.
The SHIELD contract will run through December 2035, if all options are exercised.
