21 Aug 02. The Department of Defense has selected five new start
out-of-cycle projects to receive fiscal 2002 funding under the
Foreign Comparative Testing (FCT) Program. Authorized by
Congress since 1980, the FCT Program is administered by the
director, strategic and tactical systems, Office of the Under
Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics.
The FCT program responds to a growing awareness of the value of
using non-developmental items to accelerate the acquisition
process and cut rising development costs. The principal
objective of the FCT Program is to support the U.S. warfighter
by leveraging non-developmental items of allied and other
friendly nations to satisfy U.S. defense requirements more
quickly and economically.
Given a world-class foreign item, U.S. user interest in the
item, a valid operational requirement, and good procurement
potential, the FCT Program reduces the acquisition cycle for
fielding needed systems and equipment not otherwise available.
At the same time, by promoting competition and eliminating
unnecessary research, development, test and evaluation expenses,
the FCT Program reduces total ownership costs of military
systems while enhancing standardization and interoperability,
and promoting international cooperation.
Each year the military services and U.S. Special Operations
Command nominate candidate projects to the Office of the
Secretary of Defense for FCT funding consideration. Each
proposed project is screened to ensure the non-developmental
item addresses valid requirements, a thorough market survey was
conducted to identify all potential contenders, and the sponsor
has developed a viable acquisition strategy to procure the
foreign item if it tests successfully and offers best value.
Of the five new start out-of-cycle projects for fiscal 2002, one
is sponsored by the Army, two by the Navy and Marine Corps, and
two by the Air Force. A list of these new projects is attached.
Additional FCT Program information is available on the FCT
homepage on the World Wide Web at
http://www.acq.osd.mil/sts/fct/.
FCT Projects Selected for FY 2002 Out-of-Cycle Funding
Army Project
Silverized Kevlar – Canada
Navy and Marine Corps Projects
Assault Breacher Vehicle Mine Plow and Lane Marking System – Israel, United Kingdom
Infrared (IR) Decoy – Canada
Air Force Projects
Eagle Vision Satellite Imagery Receiving and Processing Station Sensor Upgrade – France
Fiber-Optic Security Fence – Republic of Korea
Summaries of FCT Projects Selected by OSD
for FY 2002 Out-of-Cycle Funding
Army Project
Silverized Kevlar – Canada. This project would evaluate
Silverized Kevlar developed by Silverleaf Materials Ltd. for use
on the RAH-66 Comanche. This material could enhance the
performance characteristics of the structure with regard to
conductive ground plane, electro-magnetic interference
shielding, static discharge, and achieve overall weight savings
by eliminating layers of parasitic conductive materials.
Navy/Marine Corps projects
Assault Breacher Vehicle Mine Plow and Lane Marking System –
United Kingdom, Israel. This FCT project would evaluate
foreign, non-developmental Full-Width Mine Plows and Lane
Marking Systems manufactured by Pearson Engineering and Israel
Aircraft Industries, RAMTA Division. These subsystems will be
integrated into the Marine Corps’ Assault Breacher Vehicle and
tested to verify vendor performance claims and to satisfy the
requirement for in-stride breaching capability, operational
suitability, and shock and mine blast protection.
Infrared (IR) Decoy – Canada. This project would evaluate an IR
decoy produced by Magellan Aerospace – the Canadian MJU-5188
liquid pyrophoric decoy. This decoy has the potential to have
the spectral and spatial characteristics required to provide
tactical aircraft with dramatically increased self-protection
against IR threat missiles. Th