Harris wins Navy satellite communications work

Harris Corp. won a 30-month satellite communications terminal program worth up to $85 million from the U.S. Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command in San Diego, officials of Melbourne, Fla., Harris announced Nov. 6.

Harris will develop four prototypes for the next-generation Advanced Extremely High Frequency Navy Multi-band Terminal. The terminals will be installed on ship, shore and submarine platforms.

The terminals will allow units to communicate from anywhere in the world via Air Force satellites, as well as other military and commercial satellites, simultaneously. The multi-band, multi-mode terminals will provide deployed Navy commanders with secure command and control capability, as well as enhanced communications such as tactical data and imagery, real-time video, battlefield maps and targeting information, according to Harris.

If Harris wins the competition for the Navy Multi-band Terminal engineering, manufacture and development phase of the program, which will be awarded in June 2006, the total value of the program for Harris could exceed $1.4 billion by 2014, according to the company. The engineering, manufacture and development phase includes production of as many as 300 terminal systems.

The Advanced Extremely High Frequency satellite program, managed by the Air Force, is a follow-on to the Defense Department's secure, protected MILSTAR communications satellite system.