The Space Force decided to change its approach to buying satellites for the Space Test Program. The program served decades of the launched experiments for the U.S. government and its allies. The Space Force will “select a group of vendors that will compete for $50 million worth of task orders under a five-year indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract” instead of awarding in separate contracts.

The plan is to filter a list of vendors that can produce spacecraft ranging from 12U CubeSats to 180-kilogram ESPA-class satellites. The responsibility includes designing, developing, and manufacturing the spacecraft, integrating experimental payloads, testing, and supporting the launch and post-launch mission operations.

A draft, linked below, was made for the Space Test Experiment Platform 2.0, or STEP 2.0 program, on October 18. According to Col. Edward Byrne, deputy program executive officer for space domain awareness and combat power, the final request is expected to be proposed in February, and the IDIQ contract will be in July.