RTX completes milestones on DARPA Blackjack Program with four Blue Canyon Technologies satellites

Jan. 30, 2024

Blue Canyon Technologies (BCT), announced today the satellites supporting the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Blackjack program have completed critical milestones activities.

Using Blue Canyon Technologies' Saturn-class bus platform, the Blackjack program is a demonstration of cost-effective reconnaissance satellites that will operate in low Earth orbit.

Using Blue Canyon Technologies' Saturn-class bus platform, the Blackjack program is a demonstration of cost-effective reconnaissance satellites that will operate in low Earth orbit.

National security space assets, critical to U.S. warfighting capabilities, traditionally reside in a geosynchronous orbit to deliver persistent overhead access to any point on the globe. To potentially replace these large systems, the Blackjack program seeks to establish an equally effective network in low-Earth orbit using a constellation of four connected satellites.

"The Blackjack program is a perfect example of how RTX and Blue Canyon Technologies are working to solve the hardest problems in aerospace and defense," said Chris Winslett, general manager for Blue Canyon Technologies.

The successful operation marks a significant achievement for BCT in the swift commissioning of multiple spacecraft. This paves the way for global high-speed networks in LEO orbit and a continued growth of commoditized small satellite buses for LEO constellations and beyond.