Northrop Grumman wins Australian military contract

Northrop Grumman Corp., Los Angeles, will develop part of the Integrated Tactical Avionics System to allow the Royal Australian Navy Super Seasprite SH-2G(A) helicopter to perform its multi-mission role. The company estimates the value of the ITAS contract at more than $14 million.

The system being developed by Northrop Grumman "is the heart of the helicopter's combat system. We take in all of the data from the different sensors [such as] radar, a passive electronic warfare sensing system, navigation data [and] other communications data," said Jim Parys, Northrop Grumman's program manager. The system interprets the information and determines whether different contacts reported by the various sensors are the same contacts, he said.

Northrop Grumman Information Technology was selected by Kaman Corp., Bloomfield, Conn., for the development contract. The work is the second major project that Northrop Grumman IT has won for the helicopter program. In December 2001, the company completed a contract with Kaman to provide an advanced tactical data link for the helicopter. Assessment testing for ITAS is scheduled for the first quarter of 2004, Parys said.

ITAS capabilities include real-time combat information management, real-time mission planning with coupled navigation, and real-time fusion of information from the SH-2G(A)'s sensor and communications suite.