What Is the UK’s Skynet 6 Satellite Contract, and Who Could Win It?
The Ministry of Defence is weighing rival bids for its next wideband military satellites. Here is what the award covers, how the two companies compare and what remains undecided.
The live Skynet 6 contract is for a new Wideband Satellite System for UK military communications. Airbus Defence and Space UK and Lockheed Martin UK are competing. The MOD has not announced a winner. The reported award of up to £2bn concerns this satellite work, rather than every part of the broader Skynet 6 programme.
What is the MOD buying?
Skynet is the UK’s military satellite communications network. Its sixth-generation programme covers spacecraft, ground systems, terminals and service contracts. The current Airbus–Lockheed contest is one procurement within it: the Skynet 6 Enduring Capability Wideband Satellite System.
New military hardened geostationary satellites, associated ground equipment and launch work. This is the award now under evaluation.
Competing bidsOne earlier satellite contracted to Airbus. The MOD now schedules its launch for 2027.
Already awardedThe operating contract awarded to Babcock-led Team Aurora. Its service began in March 2024.
Already awardedA separate UHF satellite communications procurement within Enduring Capability.
Separate processThe MOD says the wider wideband procurement can run across up to three tranches. Today’s reporting describes a prospective award for two satellites. The first number describes the possible overall procurement structure; the second describes the reported immediate decision.
Why does the UK need these satellites?
Skynet provides protected links for UK forces, other authorised government users and allies. The MOD wants the next generation to sustain secure, resilient communications into the 2040s, including for operations beyond the reach of ordinary terrestrial networks.
Approximate altitude of geostationary orbit above the equator. A spacecraft there appears to remain over the same area, allowing suitably placed antennas to track a consistent position.
This is distinct from consumer satellite broadband. For comparison, Starlink satellites orbit much closer to Earth and form a moving low Earth orbit constellation. The services have different users and requirements.
Who could win the Skynet 6 award?
The MOD has identified two bidders. Their detailed bids and evaluation scores are not public, so the contrast below is about established roles and reported industrial plans, not a prediction.
Airbus Defence and Space UK
The incumbent satellite supplier. Airbus has a longstanding Skynet role and is already building the separate Skynet 6A satellite. It has established UK satellite operations in Stevenage and Portsmouth.
Its argument centres on existing technical capability and continuity of UK skills. Winning Skynet 6A does not give it this wideband award.
Lockheed Martin UK
The challenger. Lockheed Martin has proposed a new satellite facility in north-east England and associated jobs if chosen, according to reporting on the competition.
That investment is a bid commitment, not a completed facility or evidence that the MOD has selected it.
When will the winner be announced?
There is no confirmed award date. The Financial Times reported on 3 October that final offers submitted late in 2025 expire in mid-November 2026 and that a decision is expected within weeks. The MOD says both bids remain under evaluation.
Airbus receives the earlier, separate satellite contract.
The MOD begins the Enduring Capability procurement.
Revised invitation issued; final offers follow later in the year.
Airbus and Lockheed Martin await the award decision.
The reported up to £2bn estimate is for the contested satellite award. It should not be presented as the cost of the entire Skynet 6 programme. A formal announcement will need to establish the winning supplier, initial satellite order, price and binding UK work.
The strongest conclusion today is simple: both bids are live, the strategic stakes for UK satellite capability are high, and neither company has won this contract yet.
Airbus and Lockheed Martin are competing for the next Skynet wideband satellites. Airbus has the existing Skynet pedigree; Lockheed proposes new UK capacity. The award is pending, and it is separate from Skynet 6A and the operating contract.
Frequently asked questions
Skynet 6 contract essentialsHas the Skynet 6 wideband contract been awarded?
No. As at 3 October 2026, the MOD is still evaluating Airbus Defence and Space UK and Lockheed Martin UK for the wideband satellite system.
Did Airbus already win Skynet 6?
Airbus won the earlier Skynet 6A satellite contract. That is separate from the wideband satellite system competition now being evaluated.
How many satellites are in the new contract?
Current reporting describes an imminent award covering two geostationary satellites. The MOD’s wider wideband procurement allows for up to three tranches, so the full programme scope is broader than that initial reported award.
Is Skynet 6 the same as Starlink?
No. Skynet is a UK military satellite communications programme. Starlink is a commercial low Earth orbit network that also serves civilian internet customers.
