Arthur McMiler 
Northrop Grumman is ready to build the launch support system for the next-generation U.S. Air Force intercontinental ballistic missile Sentinel, with the company completing the system’s critical design review. Northrop said Monday that its team will build the Sentinel LSS at its Roy, Utah, facility and deploy it at Vandenberg Space Force Base.
The CDR’s completion clears the way for the system’s build, test and qualification phases, said Sarah Willoughby, Northrop Grumman vice president and general manager of strategic deterrent systems.
“By advancing the Sentinel program, we are addressing one of the nation’s most critical deterrence missions, providing resilient and dependable capabilities to safeguard our country’s future,” the company executive remarked.
Why LSS Is Critical for Sentinel
LSS is the digital command and control network designed to manage Sentinel launches. Northrop said the system’s recent design milestone was achieved within schedule.
The Sentinel program aims to modernize the ground-based element of the U.S. nuclear triad by replacing the Minuteman III ICBM system. The Department of the Air Force awarded Northrop Grumman in September 2020 an engineering and manufacturing development contract worth $13.3 billion for a tested and fully qualified design for Sentinel, formerly known as the Ground Based Strategic Deterrent.
The company had already completed several previous Sentinel tests, including the first qualification testing of a stage-two solid rocket motor in July and a shroud fly-off and missile modal tests in February 2024.
