General Dynamics to provide military mobile radios in $107.3 million contract
ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md., 1 Jan. 2014.Military communications systems designers at General Dynamics C4 Systems in Scottsdale, Ariz., will provide mobile software-defined radios for the U.S. Army under terms of a $107.3 million contract modification.
Officials of the Army Contracting Command at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md., are asking General Dynamics to provide 1,500 manpack radio kits and 500 dismount kits for the Handheld Manpack & Small Form Fit (HMS) radio system, formerly known as the Joint Tactical Radio System (JTRS) Cluster 5.
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General Dynamics originally won the contract a decade ago to provide JTRS Cluster 5 radios, which have been renamed the HMS. The original contract was worth more than $300 million.
The HMS radio system from General Dynamics consists of the AN/PRC-154 Rifleman radio and the AN/PRC-155 2-channel manpack radio. The HMS radio system extends network connectivity with voice, data, and video communications for sensors, robots, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), ground vehicles, and mobile infantry.
The General Dynamics team providing the HMS includes BAE Systems, Rockwell Collins, and Thales Communications Inc. The HMS connects warfighters without unnecessary gateways or extra devices, includes waveform and upgrades, provides self-forming networks without cell towers or fiber optics.
The AN/PRC-154A Rifleman radio is a handheld communications system for infantry that routes information through other radios in the ad hoc network and enables warfighters to see others in their teams on moving map displays, and helps leaders track infantry GPS locations and other situational-awareness information.
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The AN/PRC-155 2-channel manpack is for infantry network connectivity that supports advanced (SRW, WNW, MUOS) and current-force (SINCGARS, SATCOM, and HF). It is designed for vehicular installations as well as dismounted operations.
The AN/PRC-155 radio creates self-forming ad-hoc networks in battlefield scenarios, bridges networks together, and is reconfigurable and interoperable with current-force and future radios.
For more information contact General Dynamics C4 Systems online at www.gdc4s.com, or the Army Contracting Command at Aberdeen Proving Ground at www.acc.army.mil/contractingcenters/acc-apg.
John Keller | Editor
John Keller is editor-in-chief of Military & Aerospace Electronics magazine, which provides extensive coverage and analysis of enabling electronic and optoelectronic technologies in military, space, and commercial aviation applications. A member of the Military & Aerospace Electronics staff since the magazine's founding in 1989, Mr. Keller took over as chief editor in 1995.
