Northrop Grumman has decided not to put itself forward to be the prime contractor in the US Air Force’s Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) program.
The decision was announced by President and CEO Kathy Warden during the company’s earnings call for the second quarter of 2023.
“We have notified the U.S. Air Force that we’re not planning to respond to the NGAD RFP (Request for Proposals) as the prime,” Warden said, before clarifying that the company remained open to joining any of the remaining bidders as a supplier.
In a video released in November 2021, Northrop Grumman showcased a glimpse of a tailless stealth fighter design they were working on for the NGAD program, hinting at their previous interest in participating as the prime contractor.
The decision to step back from the NGAD program leaves only two potential prime contractors for the Next Generation Air Dominance initiative: Boeing and Lockheed Martin.
By 2030, the NGAD is due to replace the capacities of both the F-15 Eagle and the F-22 Raptor with a sixth-generation fighter, designed to collaborate effectively with Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA), drones with fighter-like capabilities.