News From Washington
Raytheon Awarded $16.8 M Production Option for US Army Air Traffic Control
Raytheon Co. has been awarded a $16.8 M production option to a previously awarded US Army Communications - Electronic Command (CECOM) contract for the production of AN/TPN-31 Air Traffic Navigation, Integration and Coordination Systems (ATNAVICS) and AN/FPN-67 Fixed Base Precision Approach Radar (FBPAR) systems.
ATNAVICS is a completely self-contained system, mounted on two High Mobility, Multi-purpose, Wheeled Vehicles (HMMWV), which provides rapid response air traffic control services at Army airfields and tactical landing sites. The system is comprised of an S-band air surveillance radar, L-band secondary surveillance radar/identification friend or foe, an X-band precision approach radar and Raytheon's AutoTrac air traffic management system. These systems provide full surveillance to 25 nautical miles and precision approach coverage to 10 nautical miles in all weather conditions.
ATNAVICS is the only radar ground controlled approach system mounted on mobile vehicles that is transportable in a C-130 aircraft. It provides a rapid air traffic control response to both tactical operations and civil disasters.
The Army's new AN/FPN-67 fixed based precision approach radar provides the US Army air traffic controllers with a proven, cost-effective tool that provides accurate and reliable aircraft position information to aid in the landing operations in adverse weather and low visibility conditions. It is identical to the ATNAVICS precision approach radar and will be installed in permanent locations at Army airfields. The AN/TPN-31 is a tactical system and the AN/FPN-67 is a fixed-base system.
Rockwell Collins Becomes Supplier of GPS Engines to US Army
CECOM has selected Rockwell Collins as the standard supplier of GPS engines to the US Army, enabling support of soldiers on the three-dimensional digital battle space. Rockwell Collins won the competitive two-year ground-based GPS receiver application module (GB-GRAM) contract that has an estimated value of $30 M when the additional options are exercised.
GB-GRAM is a NAVSTAR GPS JPO/Product Manager GPS initiative to migrate toward open system architecture for ground-based embedded military applications and will be used in communications and weapon platforms across the military over the next ten years.
Under the GB-GRAM contract, Rockwell Collins is providing its 12-channel miniature PLGR engine SAASM (MPE-S), a small, lightweight, third-generation GPS receiver. The MPE offers geolocation and precise positioning capabilities for military navigation, tactical communications, battlefield computing and other C4I (Command, Control, Computers, Communications and Information) equipment. Additional features include field reprogrammability, dual frequency and direct-Y acquisition/reacquisition capability and extended jamming protection performance.
Lockheed Martin Awarded $12 M Wide Area Search Munition Contract
The Air Force Research Laboratory at Eglin Air Force Base (AFB), FL, awarded Lockheed Martin a $12 M contract for the Autonomous Wide Area Search Munition (AWASM) program, focused on integrating a two-way data link capability into a wide area search miniature munition.
The contract launches a 30-month effort to conduct a proof-of-concept demonstration integrating a data link into a wide area search munition to transmit detected target information to a Command and Control (C2) authority and receive engagement authorization for one of the previously detected targets.
Lockheed Martin plans to leverage successes from predecessor programs such as the Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM), currently in low rate initial production (LRIP), and the combat-proven wind corrected munitions dispenser (WCMD) to make AWASM highly accurate.
AWASM will feature a laser detection and ranging radar (LADAR) seeker to automatically determine target aim points using demonstrated automatic target acquisition algorithms. The munition will be compatible with F-16, F/A-22, Joint Strike Fighter, B-1 and B-2 aircrafts. It will also be able to dispense from a Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS) rocket or an Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) missile.
Raytheon Selected as Ground Sensor Integrator
Raytheon Co. has been selected to enter into negotiation toward an estimated $50 M Future Combat Systems (FCS) contract to serve as Ground System Integrator (GSI). The announcement of this selection for negotiations was made by FCS Lead System Integrator (LSI), led by Boeing, on behalf of the US Army.
As GSI, Raytheon will develop a sensor architecture and define, select, acquire and integrate sensors to support the US Army's transformational objectives. The company will collaborate with the Army and the LSI to select the best existing sensors, direct the development of new ones and integrate the sensors in a seamless network, increasing the potential value of this package to several hundred million dollars.
FCS is the defining element of the US Army's Objective Force. FCS employs networking, an array of sensors and information fusion to achieve unprecedented levels of situational awareness and operation synchronization. Its new capabilities - network sensors, advanced command and control, agile platforms and precision effects - will enable the Army to meet changing warfare requirements.
Lockheed Martin to Develop Follow-on to Multi-purpose Assault Weapon
Lockheed Martin has been selected as one of two contractors to develop a follow-on weapon system to the Shoulder-Launched Multi-purpose Assault Weapon (SMAW) for the US Marine Corps. The contract is for the system integration phase (SIP) of the follow-on to SMAW (FOTS) program. It calls for Lockheed Martin and team member Israel Military Industries Ltd. (IMI) to develop a new shoulder-launched multi-purpose assault weapon that can be fired from enclosures or other battlefield close quarters to neutralize bunkers, urban structures and light armor. Additionally, FOTS will create access corridors in urban structures such as triple brick and reinforced concrete.
The SIP contract is expected to run 15 months and includes delivery of approximately 45 munitions in month 12 to support test firings that will result in the selection of one contractor to complete the system design and development (SDD) phase, followed by production. "Our FOTS solution will provide the Marines with a capability for firing in close quarters, a critical requirement in urban conflict scenarios," said Peter Spivy, international and domestic business development manager at Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control. "There are also many international customers who have a requirement for this type of assault weapon." Lockheed Martin has more than 40 years of experience in precision weapon systems including the only man-portable, shoulder-fired weapons qualified for fire from enclosure in the US arsenal. Javelin, developed jointly by Lockheed Martin and Raytheon, is currently fielded and Lockheed Martin Predator is in production. IMI was the original developer of the B-300 man-portable, anti-tank weapon system for the Israel Defense Forces, which led to its selection as a basis for the US Marine Corps' SMAW weapon system.