Northrop Grumman Wins $104 Million Navy AN/WSN-12 Navigation System Contract

Northrop Grumman won a U.S. Navy contract with a potential value of up to $103.6 million to produce low-rate initial production units and maintenance assistance modules for the AN/WSN-12 Inertial Navigation System. The award also covers engineering support, integration and testing. Naval Sea Systems Command made the award on Sept. 30, 2026, for purchases by the Navy and, through Foreign Military Sales, Canada and Australia. Work will take place primarily in Charlottesville, Virginia, with the remainder in Baltimore, Maryland, and could continue through July 2032.

AN/WSN-12 Inertial Navigation System Details

Northrop Grumman will supply AN/WSN-12 production units and maintenance assistance modules while supporting the system’s engineering, integration and testing. The work covers both equipment delivery and the technical effort needed to bring the navigation system into service.

The AN/WSN-12 consists of an Inertial Sensor Module and a Navigation Processing Module. It is designed to provide ships with position, attitude and velocity information derived from their movement, including when reliable GPS data are unavailable. Those outputs support ship navigation as well as combat and weapon systems.

AN/WSN-12 Program Background

The Navy plans to use the AN/WSN-12 as a form-fit-function replacement for the AN/WSN-7 on existing ships and in new construction. Its shipbuilding budget justification identifies DDG-51 destroyers as one installation path. This award’s low-rate production and integration work supports the broader effort to field the replacement system.

The rollout is being shaped by cost and installation capacity. In its FY2026 procurement budget justification, the Navy reduced its planned AN/WSN-12 purchase quantity to reflect a lower budget request and cut installation plans because of higher costs. The document said planned FY2026 installation funding covered two installations in FY2027.

Award and Contractor Background

The initial award was $29.2 million and was made without competition under a statutory exception for a requirement that only one responsible source could satisfy. Canada accounts for 42% of the purchases, Australia for 31% and the Navy for 27%. The announced work is scheduled for completion by May 2030, with the full potential performance period extending to July 2032.

Northrop Grumman has other directly related AN/WSN-12 work. A contract for surface-ship and submarine Inertial Sensor Modules has a potential value of $180.7 million and a performance period extending through October 2027. An earlier sensor-module design and development contract, valued at up to $53.6 million, covered pre-production units, testing and integration support, with a performance period ending in March 2026.

This award was disclosed by the DoW in its daily press release. Additional contract details will be available on HigherGov in approximately 90 days under N0002426C5207 after the contract is formally disclosed by the government.