Amentum will keep operating and sustaining the warning and space command systems at NORAD's Cheyenne Mountain Complex for another seven years, after the Department of War announced a $572,358,987 award for the third iteration of the NISSC contract. The company's Amentum Technology Inc. unit in Tullahoma, Tennessee, won a cost-plus-incentive-fee contract that runs through Sept. 27, 2033, with work performed at Peterson Space Force Base, Colorado.
The full title is the North American Aerospace Defense Command Cheyenne Mountain Complex Integrated Tactical Warning/Attack Assessment and Space Support Contract Three, known as NISSC III. The Department of War announcement dated Sept. 28, 2026, describes the scope in a single sentence: "This contract provides for operation, maintenance, and sustainment of the NCMC - ITW/AA, legacy space command and control, and related support systems and tools."
What Does NISSC III Actually Buy?
The announcement names three buckets of work: the NCMC integrated tactical warning and attack assessment (ITW/AA) systems, legacy space command and control, and "related support systems and tools." It does not itemize individual systems, sites, staffing levels or deliverables, and the sources reviewed for this article do not either. What the contract type and language do show is a sustainment mission: the contractor operates and maintains existing capability rather than building a new one.
Cost-plus-incentive-fee structure matters here. The government reimburses allowable costs and pays a fee that moves with performance against targets the contract sets. The announcement does not disclose the fee formula or the metrics, so the incentive terms remain unknown from public documents.
The award is a competitive acquisition. In the department's words, "This contract was a competitive acquisition, and seven offers were received." Seven bidders for a single sustainment contract at a specialized site is a wide field. It suggests the requirement drew interest well beyond the incumbent, though the announcement does not name the other offerors.
Who Is Paying, and How Much Is Committed Up Front?
At award, the government obligated $15,561,950 in fiscal 2026 operation and maintenance funds. That is roughly 2.7 percent of the $572.4 million ceiling. The rest of the value depends on future obligations over the period of performance, which ends Sept. 27, 2033. Contractors reading the announcement should treat the headline figure as the maximum potential value, with money flowing as annual appropriations and task-level funding arrive.
The contracting activity is Space Systems Command, Battle Management Command, Control, Communication and Space Intelligence, at Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado. The announcement lists the contract number as 47QTCK-18-D-0056.
How the NISSC II Incumbent Won the Follow-On
Amentum is not new to Cheyenne Mountain. GovConWire reported that Amentum was the incumbent on NISSC II. Jacobs originally won that work in 2020, and the Jacobs units involved merged into Amentum in 2024. The NISSC III award therefore extends continuity of the same operating team under a new contract rather than moving the work to a new prime.
Timing was tight. GovConWire cited a June 2026 bridge notice that identified Amentum as the NISSC II incumbent while the government prepared the follow-on award. According to that report, the notice said the NISSC II task order expires Dec. 25, 2026. GovConWire also reported that a 45-day government shutdown delayed the follow-on from its original June schedule. The award landed with a little under three months to spare before the NISSC II expiration date cited in the bridge notice, which leaves a transition window for any changes in contract terms.
Amentum announced the win on Sept. 28, 2026, according to GuruFocus, which reported the company as Amentum Holdings Inc. (NYSE: AMTM) and rounded the value to $572.4 million.
Why Cheyenne Mountain Sustainment Draws Seven Bidders
Long-duration sustainment contracts for mission-critical facilities carry steady revenue and a predictable workforce, which explains part of the appeal. This one covers a period of seven years from award, and its work centers on the tactical warning and attack-assessment mission the contract title names. The sources do not say why individual companies bid, so the appeal above is an inference from the contract's structure, not a statement from any bidder.
What the record does establish is that the incumbent prevailed against six other offers, that the follow-on was late enough to require a bridge, and that the initial funding commitment is small relative to the ceiling. Those three facts frame what happens next.
What It Means for Contractors
For the six bidders that did not win, the practical questions are debrief and protest options. The announcement does not indicate that any challenge has been filed, and none is reported in the sources reviewed. Any protest would have to be filed within the deadlines set by GAO rules, which the announcement does not address, so competitors will need to check those timelines directly.
For subcontractors and teaming partners, the incumbent's win points toward continuity. Firms already supporting NISSC II work under Amentum have reason to expect their roles to carry into NISSC III, though the announcement does not list subcontractors, and any teaming arrangements will be set by Amentum. Companies that want a role should approach Amentum's supply-chain contacts rather than wait for a government solicitation, since the prime award is done.
For firms tracking the Space Systems Command portfolio, the award shows how the command handles sustainment for legacy space command and control alongside warning systems in one vehicle. It also shows what a schedule slip looks like: a bridge notice, a shutdown-driven delay, and an award announced with roughly three months left on the predecessor task order. Contractors planning capture timelines for federal follow-on work should build in similar slack.
For finance and business-development teams, the numbers to model are the $572.4 million ceiling, the $15.6 million obligated at award, and the Sept. 27, 2033 end date. Revenue recognition will follow funding, not the ceiling.
