WASHINGTON and HUNTSVILLE, Ala., Dec. 14, 2006 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) debuted its unique approach for an integrated battle command system to the warfighter community last week at the Association of the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Symposium in El Paso, Texas. Before an invitation-only audience, the company demonstrated a new methodology to link distributed air and missile defense (AMD) systems into one seamless architecture that will give battle commanders the ability to command an integrated force on future battlefields.
The roll-out was in support of the U.S. Army's Integrated Air and Missile Defense Battle Command System (IBCS) program competition, which Northrop Grumman is bidding on as the prime contractor. The procurement will be managed by the Integrated Air and Missile Defense Program Office, which is part of the Program Executive Office for Missiles and Space located in Huntsville, Ala. A request for proposals is expected in first quarter of 2007.
"Northrop Grumman's IBCS approach brings together years of battle management, command-and-control, and system-of-systems integration expertise," said Frank Moore, vice president of the Missile Defense Division at Northrop Grumman's Mission Systems sector. "By closely listening to our customers' needs, Northrop Grumman has developed a solution that can give them what they most want -- an integrated, cost-effective solution that will enhance situational awareness, enable dynamic battle execution and revolutionize collaborative mission planning.
The demonstration was staged in a mock Tactical Operations Center located on the symposium's exhibit room floor, where the company guided participants through a simulated battle management planning and execution exercise projected for the year 2011. Existing assets were used and tied together in an open architecture to help participants understand and visualize the advantages of an integrated approach to AMD command and control.
"The hands-on, realistic nature of the demonstration showed participating warfighters just how powerful their current systems can be if they are linked into a larger net-centric network," said Rob Jassey, director of Integrated Air and Missile Defense Systems for Northrop Grumman. "The Northrop Grumman system is modular, scalable, and adaptable to any mission to enhance the system's flexibility and maximize its usefulness to the warfighter."
The IBCS is an Army transformational program that will establish a network-centric system-of-systems solution for integrating sensors, shooters, and battle management command, control, communications and intelligence systems (BMC4I) for Army air and missile defense. This effort will focus on providing the warfighter an open architecture that will allow any sensor and any shooter to be plugged into the integrated fire control network. This will allow the Army to take a "best-of-breed" approach to providing capabilities to the warfighter. IBCS is the first step toward a joint integrated air and missile defense capability.
Northrop Grumman is a leading provider of command and control and battle management systems across the U.S. Department of Defense. The company will leverage its systems engineering and integration expertise derived from fielding the Counter-Rocket, Artillery and Mortar system to support the IBCS effort. Northrop Grumman is also responsible for building and fielding the Air Defense Airspace Management Cell, which is resident at every brigade combat team, division and corps to integrate the common activities of air defense and aviation. Further, Northrop Grumman is the prime contractor for developing and fielding the Air and Missile Defense Workstation (AMDWS), a decision dominance system used successfully in operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom. AMDWS has been proliferated throughout the Army and provides 3-D situational awareness and understanding.
Northrop Grumman has extensive experience in the U.S. missile defense integration market. For the Ground-Based Mid-Course Defense system, the company is developing the highly successful fire control and launch control equipment software. The company is the prime contractor at the Joint National Integration Center and is also leading an industry team to develop and test the Kinetic Energy Interceptor system, a mobile boost/ascent/early-midcourse phase missile defense capability, and is prime contractor for the Space Tracking and Surveillance System.
Northrop Grumman Corporation is a $30 billion global defense and technology company whose 120,000 employees provide innovative systems, products, and solutions in information and services, electronics, aerospace and shipbuilding to government and commercial customers worldwide.