Pentagon cancels RTX GPS OCX ground-control contract

The Pentagon canceled RTX's Next-Generation GPS Operational Control Segment after the program slipped roughly a decade and its projected completion cost rose to about $6.27 billion.

OCX was supposed to unlock full control of GPS III capabilities, so the Space Force will keep relying on upgrades to the current ground architecture while it decides how to support GPS III and the follow-on GPS IIIF fleet.

Air & Space Forces Magazine reports the program was pulled after integrated testing found system issues broad enough to threaten existing military and civil GPS capabilities if OCX were forced into service on the planned timeline.

The decision lands the same week the final GPS III satellite reached orbit, sharpening the gap between spacecraft modernization and ground-system readiness. Lockheed's current-architecture upgrades now become more important while the service sorts out the post-OCX path.