Sparton Deleon Springs, LLC

Sparton Deleon Springs, LLC, a foreign-owned manufacturer and subsidiary of Israeli-headquartered Elbit Systems LTD (itself a subsidiary of U.S.-domiciled Elbit Systems of America LLC), manufactures specialized maritime defense systems—primarily sonobuoys, transducers, hydrophones, and unmanned surface vehicle components—as a prime contractor to the U.S. Navy across multiple indefinite delivery vehicles and direct delivery orders. The vendor competes exclusively in full-and-open procurements with no set-aside posture and does not pursue small business designations.

Sparton Deleon Springs operates from De Leon Springs, Florida, and serves as a critical supplier to Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) and Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) for undersea warfare, anti-submarine warfare, and acoustic sensor systems. Its concrete capability portfolio centers on the manufacture and delivery of AN/SSQ-53H and AN/SSQ-36B sonobuoys (acoustically deployed submarine detection sensors), Very Low Frequency transducers for acoustic augmentation, Hammerhead Deployment Canisters (maritime defense containers), and integration services for unmanned surface and aerial vehicles. Representative work includes a $58.3 million delivery order from NAVAIR awarded March 31, 2026, for FY26 AN/SSQ-53H sonobuoy production (ultimate completion March 30, 2028); an $83.6 million delivery order from NAVAIR issued June 2, 2025, for AN/SSQ-53H manufacture (completion June 2, 2027); a $10.2 million Office of Naval Research cost-plus-fixed-fee definitive contract awarded September 18, 2025, for the USABU VADAR maritime defense technology development program (completion September 17, 2026); and a $2.24 million NAVAIR delivery order from December 18, 2025, for AN/SSQ-36B sonobuoy manufacturing (completion December 31, 2027).

Customer concentration is extreme and monolithic. The Department of the Navy accounts for 86% of recent awards (all 65 tracked awards), with NAVSEA carrying $5.23 billion in combined potential value across 44 awards and NAVAIR carrying $1.28 billion across 26 awards. The two rankings are effectively identical—NAVSEA dominates both by volume and dollars, with NAVAIR as a secondary but still substantial funding source. No other federal agency represents more than 1% of the prime award footprint. The combined portfolio spans 199 prime and sub awards (192 prime, 96% of total), yielding $6.62 billion in combined potential value, of which $1.03 billion has been obligated to date (16% realization).

Sparton Deleon Springs holds at least six major indefinite delivery vehicles anchoring its Navy business. A single-award IDC N0001924D0113 with NAVAIR, valued at $213.45 million, covers AN/SSQ-125(MHDC) sonobuoy manufacture and assembly through September 30, 2025, with two delivery orders issued totaling approximately $205.4 million. A $982.1 million multiple-award IDC (N0001924D0037) with NAVSEA for the Unmanned Surface Vehicle Family of Systems runs through April 2029 and supports design, integration, and payload development for unmanned maritime platforms. A $245.93 million multiple-award IDC with NAVSEA (N0002424D6204) for Undersea Weapons and Undersea Defensive Family of Systems extends through January 23, 2029, covering specialized undersea defense systems and technical support. A $28.1 million single-award IDC with NAVSEA (N0016401D0027) for Very Low Frequency transducer first article units and production runs through February 6, 2028. A $555.1 million multiple-award Other Transaction IDV (MADOC IDIQ) with NAVAIR, issued July 20, 2022, through September 30, 2027, procures advanced maritime defense technologies, with three task orders issued totaling approximately $10.2 million as of December 2025. Additionally, a $99.9 million Other Transaction Agreement (Q53H Low-Rate Initial Production OTA) with NAVAIR, awarded September 26, 2024, through September 26, 2026, covers low-rate initial production for the Q53H sonobuoy system. The top five IDVs by ceiling value account for the vast majority of the $6.62 billion portfolio.

Activity declined sharply from a 2024 peak of 13 awards to 10 in 2025 and only 1 in the first quarter of 2026, signaling a recompete cliff. Eleven awards carrying combined potential value of $473.8 million will reach ultimate completion within the next twenty-four months, creating material recompete exposure and incumbent-defense risk across the sonobuoy production and underwater systems portfolios. The $99.9 million Q53H LRIP OTA is the largest single award approaching terminal date.

In its subcontractor role, Sparton Deleon Springs supplies unmanned systems components and maritime defense subsystems to large defense primes. Recent sub-awards include work for Saab, Inc., on the MK 39 MOD 3 Expandable Mobile Antisubmarine Warfare Training Target program (EMATT) for production engineering and air launch assemblies (March–April 2025); work for Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation on the Next Generation Handheld Targeting System (November 2024); and work for Raytheon Company on the Barracuda development program for machined and fabricated components (August 2024). Seven sub-awards represent only 4% of the tracked footprint; Sparton Deleon Springs operates predominantly as a prime.

The vendor's award distribution by NAICS and PSC reinforces its maritime acoustic focus. The top NAICS, Search, Detection, Navigation, Guidance, Aeronautical, and Nautical System and Instrument Manufacturing (334511), covers 72 awards; Other Communications Equipment Manufacturing (334290) covers 30 awards. By PSC, Underwater Sound Equipment dominates with 101 awards, followed by R&D Defense System Electronics/Communication Equipment variants. The manufacturing footprint is concentrated in De Leon Springs, Florida, where sonobuoy assembly, transducer fabrication, and integration activities occur, with subcontracted component supply chains spanning circuit board assemblies, metal stampings, castings, batteries, wiring harnesses, and parachute systems from regional and national suppliers.