Northrop Grumman Systems Corp. has received a not-to-exceed $123.781 million U.S. Navy contract for long-lead materials, parts, components, and associated work supporting production of the F-35 APG-85 radar.
Takeaways
Key facts from the contract announcement
1. $123.8 Million APG-85 Award
Northrop Grumman received a not-to-exceed $123.781 million fixed-price incentive, firm-target contract for F-35 APG-85 Lot 7 long-lead materials, parts, components, and associated efforts.
2. Contract Supports 67 Radars
The award supports the delivery schedule for 67 production APG-85 radars for F-35 aircraft operated by the Air Force, Marine Corps, and Navy.
According to the Department of Defense contract announcement dated Sept. 24, 2026, the Naval Air Systems Command, or NAVAIR, awarded the fixed-price incentive, firm-target contract to Northrop Grumman’s Linthicum Heights, Maryland, operation. The award supports the planned delivery schedule for 67 production APG-85 radars for the U.S. Air Force, Marine Corps, and Navy.
Scope of the Northrop Grumman APG-85 Contract
The contract covers Lot 7 long-lead materials, parts, components, and associated efforts needed to support production of the APG-85 radar.
Long-lead procurement is used to secure components that require significant time to manufacture or obtain before final system assembly. In this case, the contract is intended to support the radar delivery schedule rather than represent a separate purchase of 67 complete aircraft.
The announcement establishes the radar quantity associated with the Lot 7 effort at 67 production units. It does not disclose a unit price for individual APG-85 radars, nor does it identify the specific components being purchased under the award.
The contract has a not-to-exceed value of $123.781 million. That figure should not be interpreted as a separately disclosed price for each radar.
F-35 APG-85 Radar Technical and Operational Context
The AN/APG-85 is the next-generation active electronically scanned array, or AESA, radar being developed by Northrop Grumman for the F-35 Lightning II. Northrop Grumman disclosed development of the radar in 2023 and described it as the successor to the F-35’s existing AN/APG-81 radar.
The APG-85 is associated with the F-35’s broader Block 4 modernization effort. Publicly available technical information on the radar remains limited, and detailed performance specifications such as detection range, power output, frequency characteristics, and target tracking limits have not been officially disclosed.
That makes it important to distinguish the APG-85 from the AN/APG-81, which Northrop Grumman identifies as the current multifunction AESA radar forming a central part of the F-35 sensor suite. The APG-81 provides air-to-air and air-to-ground functions, including electronic warfare-related capabilities and synthetic aperture radar functions.
The U.S. Navy’s budget documentation also identifies the APG-85 as an installation associated with F-35 Block 4 upgrades.
Operational Impact on U.S. Air Force, Marine Corps, and Navy F-35 Fleets
The Lot 7 award covers radars intended for all three U.S. military services operating the F-35: the Air Force, Marine Corps, and Navy.
The procurement therefore relates to the common F-35 modernization effort across the F-35A, F-35B, and F-35C fleets. Northrop Grumman is a major F-35 industry partner and produces the existing AN/APG-81 radar as well as other major F-35 systems.
From an acquisition perspective, securing long-lead material ahead of final radar production is intended to reduce the risk that component availability becomes a constraint on the planned delivery schedule.
The timing is also relevant because APG-85 integration has been affected by development and production challenges. Air & Space Forces Magazine reported in March 2026 that F-35 aircraft were being prepared for acceptance without the new radar installed while Northrop Grumman continued work on the APG-85.
The latest contract does not state whether the Lot 7 procurement will change that delivery situation or provide a specific date for operational installation of the radar.
Contract Breakdown: Northrop Grumman APG-85 Award Details
Contract Value
The contract has a not-to-exceed value of $123,781,000.
Contractor
Northrop Grumman Systems Corp., Linthicum Heights, Maryland.
Contract Type
The award is a fixed-price incentive, firm-target contract. It was not competitively procured.
A fixed-price incentive, firm-target contract establishes a target cost and target profit while providing a mechanism for adjusting the contractor’s final profit based on actual costs and contract terms. It differs from a conventional firm-fixed-price contract in that the final price and profit can be affected by the incentive structure.
Work Locations
Work will be performed in Linthicum Heights, Maryland.
Performance Period
The work is expected to be completed in February 2031.
Funding
The Department of Defense said $66.527 million in fiscal 2026 aircraft procurement funds for the Air Force and $57.254 million in fiscal 2026 aircraft procurement funds for the Navy will be obligated at the time of award. Together, those obligations equal the full $123.781 million not-to-exceed amount stated in the announcement.
The announcement does not provide a separate funding amount for the Marine Corps.
Options Or Follow-On Work
The announcement does not identify options or additional follow-on work under this contract.
The Lot 7 award follows a similar APG-85 long-lead procurement for Lot 6, which was announced in September 2025 at $97.5 million. That earlier contract supported APG-85 radar production for the same three U.S. services and was also awarded to Northrop Grumman without competition.
Northrop Grumman Defense Industrial Base and Acquisition Impact
The Lot 7 award extends the U.S. production pipeline for the APG-85 and provides funding for components well ahead of the February 2031 contract completion date.
The repeated use of long-lead procurement for the radar also highlights the importance of component availability in the F-35 production system. The Navy’s budget documents have previously listed APG-85 long-lead procurement as a recurring requirement, with Northrop Grumman identified as the supplier.
The noncompetitive nature of the award is consistent with Northrop Grumman’s role as the developer and producer of the APG-85. The announcement does not provide additional justification for the procurement method or disclose whether alternative suppliers were evaluated.
Program Milestones and Next Steps
The immediate objective of the award is to procure the long-lead materials, parts, components, and associated efforts required to support 67 Lot 7 APG-85 production radars.
Work is scheduled to continue through February 2031 at Northrop Grumman’s Linthicum Heights facility.
The award is part of the continuing transition toward the APG-85 as the next-generation F-35 radar. Northrop Grumman’s existing APG-81 remains the radar publicly identified with current F-35 aircraft, while the APG-85 is being introduced as part of the aircraft’s modernization path.
The contract announcement does not disclose the expected delivery dates for individual Lot 7 radars, the allocation of the 67 radars among the three U.S. services, or a specific date for full operational deployment of the APG-85.
