Both major U.S. defense corporations stressed their long experience in the satellite business after submitting their proposals.

Lockheed Martin said its Transformational Satellite Communications System team included personnel who had worked on the current Milstar satellite system. TSAT is designed to eventually replace Milstar.

Lockheed Martin also said it had taken staff from its long-term Advanced Extremely High Frequency satellite for the TSAT project. AEHF is intended eventually to replace TSAT.

"Our team has worked closely with the Air Force for more than five years to mature the key TSAT technologies and define a program that is adaptive and executable," said Lockheed Executive Vice President Joanne Maguire. "Building upon our legacy of delivering protected satellite communications systems with assured connectivity, our low-risk TSAT solution will provide unprecedented capabilities ... on cost and on schedule."

Lockheed's team includes Juniper Networks and ViaSat.

Boeing said it too had valuable experience in the development of military satellites during the past 25 years that paid off in the delivery of advanced routers and laser communications.

"This is a case where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Our team has the people, processes, tools and capabilities that precisely match the Air Force's needs," Boeing Vice President Howard Chambers said in a statement.

Boeing's team includes IBM, Hughes and Cisco System as well as several other companies.