Four win $988M contract to support Army battlefield comms

Four companies will compete to improve the U.S. Army’s battlefield communications capability under a $988 million contract.

The winners are:

• Exelis Inc.
• General Dynamics C4 Systems
• Harris Corp.
• Thales Defense & Security

Under the contract, the companies will provide radio appliqués capable of running the Army Soldier Radio Waveform, or SRW, which is a waveform developed by Exelis that operates in the UHF and L-Band frequency ranges and provides a second channel solution to Single Channel Ground and Airborne Radio Systems vehicular radio installations, according to an Exelis press release.

Exelis will offer its SideHat radio that was specifically developed to integrate easily into SINCGARS, the primary tactical communications backbone for the Army, the company said.

Work is expected to be completed in April 2024.

According to the Defense Department, six bids were received for this contract.