US NAVY’S BAMS UAS PROGRAM BEGINS AFTER GAO RULING

12 Aug 08. The U.S. Government Accountability Office’s decision to deny the protest of the U.S. Navy’s Broad Area Maritime Surveillance Unmanned Aircraft System (BAMS UAS) source selection allows efforts to begin under Northrop Grumman Corporation’s prime contract. The GAO’s ruling underscores that the Navy conducted a fair and open competition to choose a provider for the service’s newest UAS for intelligence, reconnaissance and surveillance missions.

“We are very pleased that the GAO has upheld the Navy’s source selection decision for the BAMS UAS program,” said Ronald D. Sugar, Northrop Grumman chairman and chief executive officer. “This reaffirms that Northrop Grumman’s offering was selected as the best-value determination in a fair and open competition. We look forward to getting back to work on this critical program for our Navy customer.”

Northrop Grumman was awarded a contract for the BAMS UAS program on April 22. The company’s RQ-4N BAMS UAS capability employs a maritime derivative of the combat-proven RQ-4 Global Hawk unmanned aircraft equipped with several sensors, including a Northrop Grumman 360-degree Multi-Function Active Sensor (MFAS) active electronically scanned array radar and Raytheon’s Multi-Spectral Targeting System, which provides electro-optical and infrared capabilities. The system also includes Navy-unique mission control systems.