The US Air Force has awarded Lockheed Martin a fixed-price contract for nearly $25 M to develop a prototype for the next-generation 3-Dimensional Expeditionary Long-Range Radar (3DELRR). Lockheed Martin was one of two teams placed under contract for the technical development of this new land-based radar.
The Electronic Systems Center at Hanscom Air Force Base leads the acquisition for the new radar. The Air Force plans to replace its entire TPS-75 long-range radar inventory with the 3DELRR, which will detect, identify, track and report aircraft and missiles. Following a 20-month Technical Development Phase, the Air Force has said it intends to competitively award one contract for system development in the 2011 timeframe.
“Lockheed Martin will leverage our years of experience in developing transportable long-range radars to provide our long-time Air Force customer with a radar that will meet its mission requirements,” said Carl Bannar, Vice President of Lockheed Martin’s radar business in Syracuse, NY. “We are honored to have been selected to continue development on 3DELRR, and intend to demonstrate that we have the best solution.”
Lockheed Martin built the first next-generation long-range radar, the AN/TPS-59. There are more than 170 of the company’s radars—including the TPS-59, the AN/FPS-117 and the AN/TPS-77—operating throughout the world. The radars are used in areas such as battle theaters and very remote locations; none has ever been removed from service.