US Army Awards Lockheed Stryker-Mounted Electronic Warfare Contract
The US Army has awarded Lockheed Martin a $58.8 million contract to continue developing a Stryker-mounted integrated prototype suite of cyber capability and electronic warfare.
The Other Transaction Authority award supports the “manufacturing proof of concept” phase of the Terrestrial Layer System – Brigade Combat Team (TLS-BCT), a suite of sensors designed to provide signals intelligence (SIGINT), electronic warfare (EW), and cyberspace operations.
Will Be Tested By End of 2023
The service awarded Lockheed a $9.6 million proof of concept contract in September last year to build the TLS-BCT prototype in three months.
Lockheed was selected after a 16-month competitive prototyping competition involving Boeing subsidiary Digital Receiver Technology.
Lockheed will build three prototypes under the new contract, which runs through 2023, Breaking Defense wrote, citing an army spokesperson. The first operational test is planned for “no later than” the fourth quarter of fiscal 2023, the outlet added.
Integration in Armored Vehicles
“The new integrated suite of SIGINT, EW, and Cyberspace Operations provides the Warfighter with critical situational awareness of the enemy through detection, identification, location, exploitation, and disruption of enemy signals of interest,” project manager for electronic warfare and cyber Ken Strayer said.
In addition to the Stryker, the army is planning to integrate the suite into the service’s new Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicles and infantry brigades.
Strayer said that the service hasn’t decided yet whether to equip infantry brigade soldiers with a vehicle-mounted suite or a man-packed one.
