RTX completes milestones on DARPA Blackjack programme

RTX’s small-satellite manufacturer and mission services provider, Blue Canyon Technologies (BCT), has announced the satellites supporting the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Blackjack programme have completed critical milestones activities.

National security space assets, critical to US warfighting capabilities, traditionally reside in a geosynchronous orbit to deliver persistent overhead access to any point on the globe.

To potentially replace these large systems, the Blackjack programme seeks to establish an equally effective network in low-Earth orbit using a constellation of four connected satellites.

“The Blackjack programme is a perfect example of how RTX and Blue Canyon Technologies are working to solve the hardest problems in aerospace and defense,” said Chris Winslett, general manager for Blue Canyon Technologies.

The successful operation marks a significant achievement for BCT in the swift commissioning of multiple spacecraft. This paves the way for global high-speed networks in LEO orbit and a continued growth of commoditised small satellite buses for LEO constellations and beyond.
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