Lockheed to build test bed for Comanche helicopters

Lockheed Martin Corp. won a $30 million contract from the Army Program Executive Office Aviation to build test beds for new technologies for the Comanche helicopter.

Work producing the test beds, which the Army will use to evaluate avionics, sensors and weapons, will be done as part of the Army Technology Integration Center program, the company said today.

The test beds will be used for modeling, maturing and transitioning technologies, and to enable evaluation of warfighter concepts and solutions. The program also will increase performance and reduce the cost of helicopter mission equipment packages in future design and development.

The program "will preserve critical Comanche electro-optical technologies for further development and implementation, and facilitate rapid integration and evaluation," said Richard Russell, director of the Army Technology Integration Center program. "The purpose is to provide faster transition of superior technology to rotary wing forces."

Bethesda, Md.-based Lockheed Martin employs about 130,000 people worldwide and had 2003 revenue of $31.8 billion. It is No. 1 on Washington Technology's Top 100 list of prime federal contractors.