MELBOURNE, Fla., Nov. 4, 2002 (PRIMEZONE) -- The U.S. Air Force has awarded Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) a one-year, $98.5 million contract for Total System Support Responsibility (TSSR) of the E-8C Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System (Joint STARS) fleet.
The contract announced today is the third year of the six-year TSSR program. Awarded two years ago, the original TSSR contract has a total value of more than $500 million and includes options that could extend Northrop Grumman's participation on this program to more than 20 years. Based on the company's successful performance, the Air Force has already extended the contract period to seven years.
"The first two years of this cooperative business initiative between the Warner Robins Air Logistics Center and Northrop Grumman have successfully capitalized on the company's systems integration capabilities for design, production and all support through the life of the product," said Alan Doshier, vice president, Airborne Ground Surveillance and Battle Management (AGS&BM) Systems, Northrop Grumman Integrated Systems. "Our successful partnering efforts with the Warner Robins Air Logistics Center (ALC) and the Air Combat Command have provided improved system performance and training for the warfighter while reducing support costs."
Joint STARS offers battlefield commanders real-time situational information, while simultaneously transmitting target locations to aircraft and ground strike forces. Joint STARS is the only platform in the U.S. arsenal that combines accurate wide-area moving target detection with synthetic aperture radar imagery to locate, classify and track ground targets in all weather conditions from standoff distances.
"Through this support contract, we've increased aircraft operational availability and overall mission reliability of the E-8C fleet for the Air Force," said Frank Moore, AGS&BM Systems vice president for Joint STARS. "In addition, the Joint STARS production program has continued to deliver the latest Block 20 aircraft ahead of schedule adding needed warfighting capability for surveillance missions."
The Georgia Air National Guard's 116th Air Control Wing (ACW) at Robins Air Force Base, Ga., flies Joint STARS. The 116th ACW is the Air Force's first blended wing combining both active duty and Air National Guard personnel.
Under the TSSR program, Northrop Grumman is partnered with the Warner Robins ALC to provide integrated logistics support to the 116th ACW for all facets of Joint STARS depot maintenance, including technology refreshment. The ALC and Northrop Grumman use each other's best practices to provide Joint STARS support that is economical and fully meets the needs of warfighters.
Northrop Grumman's Integrated Systems sector is the prime contractor for the E-8C Joint STARS. Northrop Grumman Electronic Systems' Norden Systems unit in Norwalk, Conn., manufactures the Joint STARS radar sensor.
Northrop Grumman Integrated Systems is a premier aerospace systems integration enterprise. Integrated Systems has the capabilities to design, develop, integrate, produce and support complete systems, as well as airframe subsystems, for airborne surveillance and battle management, early warning, airborne electronic warfare and air combat aircraft. It is also integrating these capabilities for emerging network-centric warfare concepts.
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