SAN DIEGO, March 21, 2001 -- Northrop Grumman Corporation's (NYSE:NOC) Integrated Systems Sector (ISS) has been awarded a $45 million cost-plus-award-fee contract from the U.S. Air Force for the Engineering and Manufacturing Development (EMD) phase of the Global Hawk unmanned reconnaissance system program.
Major initial tasks to be conducted include planning of logistics activities and implementation of the Global Air Navigation System/Global Air Traffic Management/Traffic Collision Avoidance System, which will enable worldwide operations. Work under the contract begins this month and is scheduled for completion in February 2003.
"This contract award is a critical achievement both for Northrop Grumman and for the Global Hawk program, the company's flagship unmanned aerial vehicle system," said Robert A. K. Mitchell, vice president of the company's unmanned systems integrated product team. "EMD is a positive next step from the conclusion of a very successful Advanced Technology Demonstration Program phase toward production and the eventual deployment of the system to the warfighter."
The Global Hawk program successfully completed its Milestone II decision in a Defense Acquisition Board review on Feb. 16, 2001. Completion of Milestone II allowed the program to enter the EMD phase.
Under development for the Air Force's Aeronautical Systems Center at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, Global Hawk is a high-altitude, long-endurance, unmanned aerial reconnaissance system designed to provide military field commanders with high- resolution, near-real-time imagery of large geographic areas. Northrop Grumman ISS's Air Combat Systems business area is the prime contractor, with work performed at its Unmanned Systems facilities at the company's Ryan Aeronautical Center in San Diego, Calif. and in Palmdale, Calif.
Northrop Grumman's ISS, headquartered in Dallas, Tex., is a premier aerospace systems integration enterprise. ISS has the capabilities to design, develop, integrate, produce and support complete systems, as well as airframe subsystems, for airborne surveillance and battle management aircraft, early warning aircraft, airborne electronic warfare aircraft and air combat aircraft.