ROOSTER-6 Integration & Support RFI
Closed Pre-Solicitation Posted
- Solicitation number
- ROOSTER_RFI_FY26_0001
- Agency
-
Space and Missile Systems Center
Air Force Space Command, Department of Defense
- Responses due
- Set-aside
- No set-aside
Opportunity facts
- NAICS code
- 336414 Guided Missile and Space Vehicle Manufacturing
- PSC
- 1555 Space Vehicles
- Place of performance
- El Segundo, California 90245, United States
- Points of contact
Notice details come from SAM.gov. Updated .
About this opportunity
The Space Systems Command (SSC), SYD-89 Capability Development, Space and Missile Systems Center of the Department of the Air Force is soliciting information regarding contractor capabilities to integrate secondary payload rings and platforms onto Northrup Grumman ESPAStar-D class satellites for national security space missions. The procurement seeks contractors with expertise in integrating both separable and non-separable government-furnished payloads onto a propulsive host platform capable of hosting up to six payloads for GEO orbit missions with a minimum operational design life of two years. Key requirements include the ability to support structural, maneuver, power, software, and data/communication integration; environmental testing; launch and early on-orbit operations; and anomaly resolution, with particular emphasis on accommodating late-manifested payloads arriving less than 12 months before launch and supporting payloads at Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information (TS/SCI) and Special Access Program (SAP) classification levels. Respondents must submit a Statement of Capabilities limited to 15 pages or less, including Rough Order of Magnitude cost estimates, space integration heritage documentation, digital engineering capabilities, and recommended contract structure. The Request for Information (RFI) was posted February 10, 2026, with responses due by February 27, 2026, with an anticipated Request for Proposal (RFP) release in early Summer 2026 and contract award expected in early Fall 2026.
This is a pre-solicitation notice with no set-aside designation, though small business participation is encouraged. The primary contracting point of contact is Captain Abigail Arestides at Space and Missile Systems Center in El Segundo, California. No specific award value or budget range has been disclosed in the RFI. The applicable NAICS codes are 336414 (Guided Missile and Space Vehicle Manufacturing) or 541712 (Research and Development in Guided Missile and Space Vehicles), with a small business size standard of 1,250 employees. Contractors are encouraged to identify potential subcontracting opportunities and applicable socio-economic designations, and the government emphasizes cost control as a priority while seeking information on digital engineering and digital twin capabilities for manifest planning, configuration management, and operations analysis.
Notice text
Please see the attached document titled Rooster 6 Integration Support in Attachments for full description and Instructions to responders:
SCOPE AND DEFINITIONS:
Space Systems Command (SSC), SYD-89 Capability Development System Program Manager (SPM)
(SSC/SYD89/SYA) is soliciting information about potential sources for the ROOSTER-6 Integration &
Support Contract, to perform the integration of a secondary payload ring/platform capable of hosting
multiple payloads to support national security missions. The integration of payloads will be for mission
sets spanning across SSC and potentially other USSF or DoW partners. Missions can vary from
experimental/prototyping to operational. These platforms will launch on National Security Space Launch
(NSSL) missions and can include payloads up to the highest classified levels. The Government seeks
information on existing integration expertise with the ESPAStar-D platform and integrating multiple
mission payloads and associated acquisition/contract structure, technical, cost, and schedule feasibility.
Two types of payloads are expected to be manifested on the platforms furnished to the ROOSTER-6
Integration & Support Contract: 1) on-orbit separable payloads, and 2) on-orbit non-separable payloads.
The two types of payloads intended for integration as well as any encryption devices (if needed) will be
provided as Government Furnished Equipment (GFE). Separable payloads are integrated on to the multimission
host ring/platform and are deployed days to months after launch. The specific port that the
payload will be “fully integrated” into will be on a Northrup Grumman built ESPAStar-D class secondary
payload ring. Non-separable payloads are integrated on the host ring/platform and remain with it for the
entire mission duration. The term “fully integrated” is used to describe a platform with payloads
mounted and integrated into available secondary payload ring ports and fully tested at the system (ring)
level.
CAPABILITY REQUIREMENT:
SYD 89/SYA seeks an experienced integrator for this flexible and modular propulsive host satellite
ring/platform that will accommodate multiple payloads (separable and hosted) in support of different
mission sets primarily in a GEO Orbit. The capability to operate in other orbital regimes is also under
consideration. The host ring/platform will have a minimum operational design life of 2 years. These
missions will be launched on NSSL missions as part of an Integrated Payload Stack (IPS) that is expected
to include other spacecraft or payload adapters. As part of the launch manifest, integrated vehicles must
meet all launch safety requirements including coupled loads analysis, thermal analysis, and testing to
actual or forecasted launch environments. The propulsive host ring/platform shall at a minimum be
capable of hosting six ESPAStar-D Class Payloads. Functional testing of the integrated propulsive host
vehicle in a simulated space environment is also expected. Support for workarounds, such as testing with
payload mass simulators, is expected to accommodate payloads that will not arrive until processing at the
launch site. The propulsive host ring/platform structure is intended for attachment and separation from the
launch vehicle Payload Attachment Fitting (PAF) or another payload adapter of the same size. Once
separated from the launch vehicle, the multi-mission host ring/platform must support separable payloads
until they are deployed into their intended orbits and continue to support non-separable payloads for
mission duration.
GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF WORK REQUIRED:
Payloads may have greatly differing mission sets, which will create a wide range of different
requirements for each. Generally, however, the integration to the propulsive host ring/platform to the
payloads should include structural, maneuver, power, software, and data/communication links required to
monitor and sustain the non-separated spacecraft and perform hosted payloads’ on-orbit mission. To
integrate payloads into the host ring/platform the Government expects the following general work
requirements:
• Contractor will fully integrate separable and non-separable payloads into the host platform
•Contractor will support standard space vehicle environmental testing of the integrated host ring/platform
•Contractor will support launch and early on-orbit operations, including anomaly resolution
•Ability to support payloads at various classification levels up to and including TS/SCI and SAP, to include personnel, facilities, security, communication systems, processes, etc
•Ability to support late manifested payloads (less than L-12 months)
Files
| File | Type | Posted |
|---|---|---|
| ROOSTER 6 Integration Support RFI 10Feb2026.pdf | ||
| Rooster 6 Integration Support_RFI 10FEB26.pdf |
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