WASHINGTON, March 19, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) will highlight capabilities that add strategic mobility and flexibility to the nation's layered missile defense system at the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics 7th Annual U.S. Missile Defense Conference and Exhibition set for March 23-25 at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center.
The company, located in Booth #201, will emphasize programs currently underway to enhance global aspects of the nation's ballistic missile defenses while offering more affordable solutions for protecting population centers and critical assets.
"The U.S. Missile Defense Agency has a portfolio of future programs that is essential to keeping ahead of an increasingly complex threat," said Larry Dodgen, executive lead for Northrop Grumman's Missile Defense Integration Group. "These programs will give the U.S. strategic flexibility where it's needed and when it's needed."
Northrop Grumman is the prime contractor for programs crucial to a more global, mobile, flexible and affordable defense from ballistic missiles. These include:
* Kinetic Energy Interceptors, a deployable early engagement weapon system for vital regional defense on demand to protect the homeland and strategic interests overseas; * Space Tracking and Surveillance System, the Missile Defense Agency's (MDA) only midcourse phase system to track enemy ballistic missiles, designed to demonstrate the key functions of a space-based sensor; * The Missile Defense Integration and Operations Center, Colorado Springs, Colo., where nearly all missile defense tests of the operational BMDS are conducted and controlled by warfighters. The center also is the site for BMDS-level modeling and simulation, ground and flight tests, analysis and operational training.
As a BMDS subcontractor, Northrop Grumman is also:
* Providing the high-energy and beacon illuminator lasers for the Airborne Laser to prime contractor, The Boeing Company; * Sustaining member of the National Team creating the Command and Control Battle Management and Communications System; * Developing the fire control and launch control equipment software to Boeing for the Ground-based Midcourse Defense (GMD) system.
Information will be available also about:
* Progress to-date on the U.S. Army's Integrated Air and Missile Defense, Battle Command System, which will establish a network- centric system-of-systems solution for integrating sensors, shooters, and battle management, command, control, communications and intelligence systems for Army air and missile defense. * The company's pursuit of MDA's GMD follow-on effort. In January, MDA announced its intention to hold a new competition for the operations and sustainment of its GMD system. Northrop Grumman has extensive GMD domain knowledge acquired during more than 50 years supporting alert-ready Minuteman III ICBMs.
For more information about Northrop Grumman in missile defense, go to www.northropgrumman.com/missiledefense.
Northrop Grumman Corporation is a leading global security company whose 120,000 employees provide innovative systems, products, and solutions in aerospace, electronics, information systems, shipbuilding and technical services to government and commercial customers worldwide.