Three U.S. military wings issue contracts to BAE, Northrop Grumman

 

Three U.S. military wings tapped two prominent defense contractors to design Common Infrared Countermeasure systems, according to a published report.

BAE Systems and Northrop Grumman were awarded the contract by the U.S. Army, U.S. Navy and the U.S. Marines, according to Aviation Today. The BAE Systems contract is worth $38 million and has a duration of 21 months, for which the company will supply its Boldstroke laser countermeasure system. The portion of the contract for Northrop Grumman totals $31.4 million and the company plans to merge efforts with SELEX Galileo and Daylight Defense.

"This decision is a validation of our technology and commitment, and of our 30 years' experience pioneering and delivering this type of technology and the exacting work behind it all, including threat exploitation, jam code development, hardware-in-the-loop simulations, flight tests, and live fire tests," said Bill Staib, director of BAE Systems’ Survivability & Targeting Solutions business.

Northrop Grumman released a statement indicating it is looking forward to working with the U.S. Army on the Technical Demonstration phase of the CIRCM program.

The contractors are likely to create opportunities for defense jobs and intelligence jobs that may be populated by personnel who have undergone a lifestyle polygraph test and hold security clearance.