Boeing Adds Production Line to Boost Space Force’s Missile Warning Push
•February 20, 2026
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Why It Matters
The added capacity accelerates the deployment of space‑based missile warning sensors, strengthening U.S. deterrence while showcasing Boeing’s ability to meet heightened defense production demands.
Key Takeaways
- •Boeing opens 9,000‑sq‑ft EO/IR line in El Segundo.
- •Line supports Space Force’s MWT MEO 12‑satellite contract.
- •Production target: 26 spacecraft in 2026, double 2025 output.
- •New line aligns with Pentagon’s “wartime footing” push.
- •Delayed launch to mid‑2027 due to supply chain issues.
Pulse Analysis
Boeing’s new EO/IR production line marks a strategic scaling of its small‑satellite business, positioning the company to meet the Space Force’s Resilient Missile Warning and Tracking (MWT) requirements. By consolidating sensor manufacturing within its El Segundo plant, Boeing can streamline integration with Millennium Space Systems’ agile spacecraft platform, reducing lead times for the 12‑satellite contract slated for 2027. The facility’s 9,000‑square‑foot footprint also serves as a template for future expansions, supporting Boeing’s goal of delivering 26 satellites this year—more than double its 2025 output.
The move dovetails with the Department of Defense’s broader push to place the defense industrial base on a "wartime footing." Recent acquisition reforms emphasize rapid production, schedule credibility, and accountability, prompting leaders like Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to champion factory upgrades and new lines. Boeing’s investment signals its commitment to these directives, while competitors such as BAE Systems and L3Harris secure parallel contracts for later epochs, intensifying competition for space‑based missile defense work.
For investors and industry observers, the line’s activation signals potential revenue growth and a stronger foothold in the high‑value space‑defense market. Accelerated sensor production could shorten the timeline for deploying a resilient missile‑warning constellation, enhancing U.S. strategic deterrence. Moreover, the expanded capacity may spill over into commercial satellite projects, allowing Boeing to capture a larger share of the burgeoning low‑Earth‑orbit services market while mitigating supply‑chain bottlenecks that have previously delayed launches.
Boeing Adds Production Line to Boost Space Force’s Missile Warning Push
Boeing announced Feb. 20 it has opened a new production line dedicated to building electro-optical infrared sensors for the Space Force and other customers.
The 9,000-square foot manufacturing line is housed within the company’s satellite production facility in El Segundo, Calif. The expansion will help the firm’s small spacecraft arm, Millennium Space Systems, fulfill its contract to deliver 12 satellites in 2027 for the Space Force’s Resilient Missile Warning and Tracking program, or MWT MEO.
“By combining Millennium’s agility with Boeing’s EO/IR payload capability, we can deliver superior mission performance for the MWT MEO program,” Millennium CEO Tony Gingiss said in a statement. “We will continue investing in and expanding our production footprint to advance our capability and drive future mission success.”
Boeing opened a new electro-optical infrared production line in February of 2026 at its satellite factory in El Segundo, Calif. (Boeing)
The missile warning and tracking satellites will be launched to medium-Earth orbit and are part of the Space Force’s broader architecture to detect and track enemy missiles from space. That architecture will likely play a key role in the Pentagon’s Golden Dome effort, which aims to create an advanced missile defense shield by stitching together new and existing capabilities, like space sensors and command-and-control systems.
The Space Force plans to launch the MEO satellites in batches or “epochs,” with Millennium’s spacecraft making up the first installment. The first launch was initially slated for 2026 but has since been pushed to mid-2027 due to supply chain issues. The service has also awarded a contract to BAE Systems to provide 10 satellites for Epoch 2, and L3Harris is on contract to develop a prototype for the program.
Beyond the Missile Warning and Tracking program, Boeing expects the added capacity will help the company rapidly scale production across its satellite production lines. The company has set a target to deliver 26 spacecraft this year—more than twice what it produced in 2025.
“We’re moving to more than double our satellite output this year, and investments like this, along with other factory upgrades and continued investment in our team, are how we do it with schedule credibility,” Sam Greaves, Boeing’s interim vice president for space mission systems, said in a statement.
The company’s emphasis on scaling satellite production comes amid Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s campaign to put defense industry on “wartime footing.” Last November, the Pentagon issued a strategy to transform the way it buys and delivers systems, increase production, and hold companies accountable for poor performance. Hegseth has since been on a nationwide speaking tour of the defense industrial base, visiting factories and encouraging the workforce to meet the moment.
During a Feb. 18 visit to Boeing’s St. Louis, Missouri factory—where the company builds the F-47 and F-15EX fighters, the T-7 trainer, and weapons like the Joint Direct Attack Munition—Hegseth urged Boeing employees to adopt the same sense of urgency.
“Our only job is to say, run faster, cut more deals, invest more deeply—not just in another shift but a new production line and then another line next to it,” he said. “It’s not enough to just provide a little bit more. We need a lot-a-bit more given the states and the threats in front of us.”
The post Boeing Adds Production Line to Boost Space Force’s Missile Warning Push appeared first on Air & Space Forces Magazine.
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