EUROPE

07 Jun 05. EADS SPACE Services has signed a framework agreement (ASTEL-S convention) with the French Ministry of Defence to provide satellite telecommunications services. EADS SPACE Services will provide the French armed forces with satellite telecommunications services in both civilian Ku (between Europe and external theatres of operations), and C bands and the military band (SHF), for a renewable period of two years. The applications focus on land-based, naval and airborne activities and the coverage of world-wide services
(video-conferencing, Internet, data exchange). For the ASTEL-S contract, EADS SPACE Services is working with London Satellite Exchange Ltd, whose operational base is in Toulouse. In order to meet the different requirements of the Ministry of Defence, EADS SPACE Services has reached agreements with the largest commercial satellite operators and with its British subsidiary, Paradigm Secure Communications, which already provides military telecommunications services to the United Kingdom Government.

09 May 05. L-3 Communications Integrated Systems subsidiary was awarded an 18-month contract to conduct Stage 2 architecture studies for the U.K. MoD’s Project Helix, valued at approx. $9m.

Jun 05. EADS Defence and Security Systems Ltd (EADS DS Ltd), has achieved a major milestone with the delivery of the first 27 of 1064 new High-Grade cryptographic CLERISY production units for the Skynet 5 system, providing continuity of satellite communications services to British forces. These units utilise inter-alia the US Electronic Key Management System (EKMS) standard protocols. CLERISY encrypts and decrypts traffic for transmission between locations within the Skynet 5 Communications System. Normally requiring five years from concept to production, the CLERISY project has achieved delivery in just two and a half years.

08 Jun 05. Raytheon Systems Limited (RSL) has been awarded a £2m contract by BAE SYSTEMS to support the integration of the Enhanced Paveway II (UK) guided bomb onto the new Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft. Enhanced Paveway II (UK) is a dual-mode (laser/GPS), all-weather, off-axis, precision strike weapon. RSL has already commenced on the first of three work packages which will cover documentation, weapon modification and the integration itself.

USA

07 Jun 05. DRS Technologies Inc., received $43m in new orders to produce a family of next-generation Thermal Weapon Sights for U.S. Army ground-force applications. DRS received the orders from the U.S. Army’s Communications-Electronics Command in Fort Monmouth, N.J. The orders are part of a five-year contract awarded to DRS in March 2004.

03 Jun 05. Army in R&D pact with Harris for imaging test bed system. The Army’s Communications-Electronics Command has awarded a $6.6m R&D contract to Harris Corp. to develop and demonstrate the Jigsaw Laser Radar 3D-imaging test bed system for use on an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). The ability to reliably identify targets, including tanks and other vehicles, hidden under foliage and camouflage was successfully demonstrated by Harris and MIT-Lincoln Laboratories during an earlier proof-of-concept Jigsaw study. This demonstration was followed by the recently completed initiative to design a smaller, lighter, autonomous,
better-performing test bed system suitable for use on a medium-sized UAV. During this latest phase of the DARPA-sponsored effort, Harris is providing systems integration services in cooperation with LADAR sensor developer MIT-LL and DP-5X platform developer Dragonfly Pictures Inc. of Essington, Pa. (Source: GCN)

08 Jun 05. Raytheon’s Network Centric Systems, St. Petersburg, Fla., is being
awarded an $8,400,000 modification to previously awarded contract (N00024-03-C-5118) for investigation and study of the radio waveform used by the
Navy’s Cooperative Engagement Capability (CEC) Program. CEC is a sensor netting system that significantly improves battle force anti-air warfare ca