Northrop Grumman gets $3.2 billion
contract to handle Global Hawk upgrades
Northrop Grumman gets $3.2 billion
contract to handle Global Hawk upgrades over next decad
Northrop Grumman gets $3.2 billion contract to handle Global Hawk upgrades over next decade
October 1, 2015
ROBINS AIR FORCE BASE, Ga., 1 Oct. 2015. Unmanned aircraft
experts at Northrop Grumman Corp. will handle upgrades, technology
insertion, and maintenance of the U.S. Air Force RQ-4 Global Hawk
unmanned surveillance aircraft over the next decade under terms of
a $3.2 billion contract announced Wednesday.
Officials of the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center at Robins Air
Force Base, Ga., are asking the Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems
segment in San Diego to handle configuration management, data
management, technical refresh, andcomponent-obsolescence issues
for all Air Force variants of the Global Hawk.
Northrop Grumman is the original equipment manufacturer of the Global
Hawk unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), which the Air Force uses for
long-endurance and high-altitude surveillance missions throughout
the world.
Global Hawk was designed by Ryan Aeronautical, which Northrop Grumman
acquired in 1999. The UAV has a role similar to the U-2 high-altitude
surveillance aircraft.
Related: Air Force asks Northrop Grumman to stiffen Global Hawk
UAV defenses against cyber attacks
The Air Force awarded the contract on 30 Sept. 2015, the last day of federal
fiscal year 2015 -- a time when many large contracts are let to clear up
financial details at the end of the fiscal year.
acquired in 1999. The UAV has a role similar to the U-2 high-altitude
surveillance aircraft.
Related: Air Force asks Northrop Grumman to stiffen Global Hawk
UAV defenses against cyber attacks
The Air Force awarded the contract on 30 Sept. 2015, the last day of federal
fiscal year 2015 -- a time when many large contracts are let to clear up
financial details at the end of the fiscal year.
The RQ-4 UAV provides broad-area surveillance using high-resolution
synthetic aperture radar (SAR) and long-range infrared sensors. The aircraft
can remain aloft for days and can survey as much as 40,000 square miles a day.
A Navy version of the Global Hawk called the MQ-4C Triton Broad Area
Maritime Surveillance (BAMS) UAV assists the Navy's Boeing P-8 surveillance
jet with anti-submarine warfare (ASW) and maritime patrol duties.
Contractor logistics support, although an expensive line item in the Pentagon
budget, often makes sense in the modern era of complex military
technology-especially as military personnel are taking a hit from U.S.
Department of Defense budget cuts.
SPONSORED CONTENT ?
Open Systems Architectures for RF and Microwave SystemsWithin the
technology-especially as military personnel are taking a hit from U.S.
Department of Defense budget cuts.
SPONSORED CONTENT ?
Open Systems Architectures for RF and Microwave SystemsWithin the
commercial industrial base adherence to standards such as IEEE, ANSI and
ISO are nothing new. However, there has been very little standards-based activity
born out of defense. Meaning, when a standards-based approach is called for,
almost all of the activity comes out of the commercial sector.
Maintaining large and complex weapon systems such as the Global Hawk is a
massive undertaking. The Air Force increasingly has chosen contractor logistics
support as an alternative to in-house support of weapon systems since the last
decade, particularly for depot maintenance for airframes and engines, as well
as for parts repair and replacement.
Contractor logistics support normally involves several sustainment tasks,
usually for the life of the weapon system. Examples of common contractor
logistics support tasks are aircraft and engine overhaul, repair and replenishment
of parts, sustaining engineering, and supply chain management.
Northrop Grumman will do the work involved in this contract in San Diego,
and should be finished by September 2025. For more information contact
Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems online at www.northropgrumman
.com, or the Air Force Life Cycle Management
Center-Robins at www.robins.af.mil/units/aflcmc.
Nenhum comentário:
Postar um comentário