Other · Multi-domain
Integrated Battle Command System (IBCS)
Northrop Grumman command and control system linking air and missile defense sensors and shooters.
- Milestones3
- Operators—
- Components—
- Programs—
- Capabilities—
- Inputs—
Photo: U.S. Army photo by Nathaniel Pierce · Public domain (PD-USGov-Military-Army) · Source-published 1000px rendition; resized and reencoded as WebP without additional crop or retouching. Federal photographer and public-domain release verified on DVIDS.
U.S. Army program-of-record air and missile defense battle command system built by Northrop Grumman. It networks radars and interceptors from different programs into one fire-control picture, and Poland has also adopted it.
Timeline3
- Contract awardConfirmed
Five-year Army contract for low-rate and full-rate production
The company describes the contract as worth more than $1 billion.
- First deliveryConfirmed
First production major end item delivered to the Army
The first item delivered was an Integrated Collaborative Environment shelter.
- MilestoneConfirmed
All low-rate initial production end items delivered
Northrop Grumman finished delivering 142 major end items under LRIP and said full-rate production would follow.
The latest 10 milestones. Solid entries are confirmed, outlined reported, dashed estimated or still to come; dotted italic entries are speculative. Dates show only the precision the sources give.
Cost to the Government
Weapon systems · Northrop Grumman
Integrated Battle Command System (IBCS)
Command-and-control development and production are distinct from the missiles, launchers and sensors connected to IBCS.
Comparable unit price
Not verified
No comparable standalone unit price was established; package or contract totals are shown separately.
U.S. inventory
Not verified
A current U.S. inventory was not established. Annual procurement, cumulative deliveries and production capacity are not a stockpile count.
U.S. procurement quantity
Not verified
No comparable U.S. procurement quantity was established in this review.
Development funding requested · five-year window
$1.4B
FY2021–FY2025 · as of FY2025 budget · Nominal USD; source budget basis
GAO rounded aggregate of Army development requests over this five-year window. Not lifetime R&D, enacted funding or spending.
GAO ↗Cost & funding breakdown
Procurement funding requested · five-year window
$1.8B
FY2021–FY2025 · as of FY2025 budget · Nominal USD; source budget basis
GAO rounded aggregate of requests; not a per-system price or a single contract.
GAO ↗Testing drove additional development requests
GAO reports increased testing needs as development requests for FY2021–FY2025 rose from an anticipated $460.5M to about $1.4B. These are two views of the same period, not amounts to add together. Connected radars, launchers and interceptors retain their own program costs.
Foreign awards do not establish a control-node price
The company reports an annual Poland award aggregate without a comparable equipment denominator. Keep this separate from the Army multi-year budget requests and the earlier U.S. production ceiling.
Operations & sustainment
Annual operations & support
Not verified
A complete, system-specific annual operating and support cost was not established. Procurement, replacement rounds and contract support are different measures.
Cost over time · 2 observations
Each row retains its original scope and dollar basis. Changing quantities, service life and inflation can change the estimate without changing the price of building one unit.
| Observation | Measure | Amount | Dollar basis | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2021 budget plan | Planned development funding · FY2021–FY2025 Original planned requests for the five-year window, per GAO. | $460.5M | Nominal USD; source budget basis | GAO ↗ |
| FY2021–FY2025 · as of FY2025 budget | Development funding requested · five-year window GAO rounded aggregate of Army development requests over this five-year window. Not lifetime R&D, enacted funding or spending. | $1.4B | Nominal USD; source budget basis | GAO ↗ |
Contracts & purchasing · 2 records
Award values, ceilings and purchase agreements have different meanings. These records are not added together as total spending.
2021-12 · Production contract
U.S. Army → Northrop Grumman
$1.4B · quantity not established
Low-rate initial and full-rate production. This contract is separate from the coincidentally similar $1.4B development-request figure; do not equate them.
Northrop Grumman ↗2024 · Reported annual awards
Poland → Northrop Grumman
$900M · quantity not established
Approximately $0.9B in Poland IBCS awards reported in 2024 earnings, published January 30, 2025. Aggregate awards, not a single contract, cash expenditure or system price.
Northrop Grumman · SEC filing ↗
Connected missiles & systems
Launcher and battle management
IFPC Increment 2 / Enduring Shield
IFPC Increment 2 integrates with Army IBCS; their development and procurement scopes differ.
U.S. Army ↗
International buyers
Poland · Quantity not verified · Letter of Offer and Acceptance signed · 2018-03-28
Historical IBCS acquisition agreement; quantity and current delivery totals are not established by this release.
Northrop Grumman ↗
Coverage & open research
- Current U.S. inventory and complete annual operating-and-support costs require additional public evidence.
- Buyer records are selected examples, not a complete global order book.
- The displayed R&D reference is annual funding or a specified multi-year request window, not a verified lifetime total.
Unit costs and contract unit prices for this system, and budget figures for the programs that buy it. Each figure states its dollar basis and links its source; contract values are under Programs & awards.