L3Harris corporate headquarters in Melbourne, Florida. Photo: L3Harris

L3Harris Technologies reported a 10% decline in revenue during the first quarter of 2022 compared to the first quarter of 2021, although its Space business saw a $60 million revenue increase, reflecting growth in responsive satellite programs. 

Overall, L3Harris Technologies reported $4.1 billion in Q1 revenue. Each segment — Integrated Mission Systems, Space and Airborne Systems, and Communication Systems — saw revenue decline. 

Space & Airborne Systems reported $1.5 billion in revenue for the quarter. This segment saw the smallest revenue decrease compared to other segments, — down 1% compared to Q1 last year. The increase in revenue in Space was offset by declines in the airborne businesses including production transitions and lower development on the F-35 program. 

L3Harris said that demand remains robust for responsive satellites and ground-based systems. During the quarter, the company logged awards for approximately $120 million in follow-on awards for the Maintenance of Space Situational Awareness Integrated Capabilities (MOSSAIC) for ground-based command and control systems, $50 million for the Deep Space Advanced Radar Capability (DARC) program to provide a space monitoring antenna, and nearly $50 million in support of a classified program. 

L3Harris CEO Chris Kubasik spoke about the opportunity for the Space business in the Q1 investor call. “The space business is really doing well, well over $2 billion of revenue, double-digit growth [in 2022]. We’re in the sweet spot,” Kubasik said, mentioning prime positions on Space Space Development Agency and Hypersonic and Ballistic Tracking Space Sensor contracts, classified programs, GPS programs, weather satellites, and exquisite satellite programs which L3Harris subcontractors for. 

The Communications Systems segment, which includes satellite terminals, reported a 13% revenue decrease during the quarter compared to the same time last year. Communication Systems revenue was $963 million during the quarter. L3Harris reported that Tactical Communications declined $59 million primarily due to supply chain impacts and Broadband Communications declined $72 million due to lower volume on legacy platforms.

L3Harris is forecasting modest growth in 2022, projecting full year revenue between $17.3 billion and $17.7 billion, with organic revenue growth between 1% to 3%. 

The company also highlighted that the 6% topline increase in the government fiscal year 2022 National Defense Budget supports funding for L3Harris programs including responsive satellites and resilient communications.