Article Posted on : - Jul 15, 2011

A US Air Force C-17 Globemaster. Photo: USAF.

SAN DIEGO (BNS): The US Air Force (USAF) has awarded Northrop Grumman Corporation a $65 million contract to provide tactical situational awareness to airlift aircrews, fulfilling an urgent operational need for enhanced communications and an operational picture of the battlespace displayed in the cockpit.

The company will provide the Air Force Air Mobility Command with 58 Mobility Air Forces (MAF) Dynamic Re-tasking Capability (DRC) Urgent Operational Need (UON) systems, including spares, before June 30, 2012, according to a news release by Northrop Grumman.

The systems will be installed in 28 C-130J and 24 C-17 aircraft.

The MAF DRC system includes a secure line-of-sight and beyond line-of-sight datalink; display systems for the pilot and co-pilot; a processor/server for command and control of the radios and displays; and presentation and recording of the existing host aircraft navigational system data.

The contract which was awarded by the Air Force Electronic Systems Center, Hanscom Air Force Base, Massachusetts, also includes two years of training and payload support at four integration sites in the United States and three overseas locations.