Alliant Techsystems was awarded a Sounding Rocket Program Three (SRP-3) contract with potential value of $250 million from the U.S. Air Force to provide launch vehicles and engineering and integration services for intercept systems and atmospheric sounding rocket experiments.

These systems help ensure readiness to mitigate missile threats against the United States, its deployed forces, and allies.

The SRP-3 is a seven-year indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity (IDIQ) sounding rocket contract, that builds on two previous IDIQ efforts (SRP-1 and -2). The Sounding Rocket Program provides low-cost sub-orbital ballistic launches that support experiments, payloads, and targets for the Air Force, other U.S. Department of Defense agencies and NASA using existing motor assets.

ATK has provided government-supplied and commercial motors for targets used in missile defense testing and sounding rockets for research for over five decades. ATK produces the world's largest line-up of solid rocket motors, including CASTOR IV, CASTOR 120, and Orion motors along with manufacturing the M55A1, M57, SR-118, and SR-120 used in prior sounding rocket programs.

"ATK's motors have ensured success on hundreds of missions," said Kent Rominger, ATK vice president of Advanced Programs. "We plan to add to that record of success while increasing value to the customer through integration and flight operations on the sounding rocket program contract."

Over the past ten years, ATK's team has supported 71 launch vehicles and missile missions. The SRP-3 team includes ATK members from Salt Lake City and Woodland Hills, Calif., and Miltec, a Ducommun Company, out of Huntsville, Ala.

The Air Force's Space and Missile Center, Space Development and Test Wing at Kirtland AFB, NM, will administer the program. ATK also has another continued contract with the Space Development and Test Wing as the lead for aging and surveillance of Minuteman II and Peacekeeper motors.