Harris wins $400 million contract to replace legacy U.S. Special Operations radio equipment

MAC DILL AFB, Fla., 11 April 2012. Leaders of the U.S. Special Operations Command at MacDill Air Force Base, Fla., are looking to military radio communications experts at the Harris Corp. (NYSE:HRS) RF Communications Division, Rochester, N.Y., for a $400 million program to upgrade hand-held Joint Tactical Radio Systems (JTRS) for Special Operations forces in the field.

Special Operations Command awarded Harris RF a $400 million maximum-five-year contract Tuesday for a capital equipment replacement program that aims to swap out Special Operations Command's legacy AN/PRC-148 Multiband Inter/Intra Team Radio (MBITR) and AN/PSC-5D Multi-Band/Multi-Mission Communication Terminal with the newer Harris AN/PRC-152(V) 5/6, AN/PRC-152A(V)1/2, and AN/PRC-117G (V) 3(C) software-defined radios.

The Harris AN/PRC 152 Falcon III multiband, multimission handheld radio complies to the JTRS Software Communications Architecture (SCA) and is software upgradeable. It operates at frequencies from 30 to 512 MHz, and has extended frequency coverage to 520 MHz, and from 762 to 870 MHz, has Sierra programmable encryption.

The Harris Falcon III handheld works with the fielded Single-Channel Ground and Airborne Radio Systems (SINCGARS), VHF/UHF AM and FM, and optional Have Quick radios, has an optional APCO-P25 waveform for interoperability with civilian authorities, tactical satellite communications (SATCOM) capability, and optional embedded GPS receiver.

The Harris AN/PRC-117 is a JTRS SCA-compliant, Type-1 secure tactical radio with high-bandwidth simultaneous voice, data, and combat net radio capabilities. Its high-bandwidth capability enables applications such as streaming video, simultaneous voice and data feeds, collaborative chat, and connectivity to secure networks.

The AN/PRC-117G operates in the 30 MHz to 2 GHz frequency bands, is software upgradeable. It works with SINCGARS, Have Quick II, VHF/UHF AM and FM, High Performance Waveform (HPW), and MIL-STD-188-181B SATCOM, uses the Harris Adaptive Networking Wideband Waveform (ANW2) for high bandwidth data operation, and operates off one standard battery while maintaining peak transmit power of 10 Watts VHF and 20 Watts UHF.

The Harris AN/PRC-117 and AN/PRC-117G will replace the Thales AN/PRC-148 Multiband Inter/Intra Team Radio and the Raytheon AN/PSC-5D Multi-Band/Multi-Mission Communication Terminal in the Special Operations Command communications arsenal.

The Thales AN/PRC-148 MBITR tactical software-defined radio was developed for Special Operations Command in the 1990s to replace heavy manpack radios, has been in production since 2000, and has been in use with NATO forces around the world.

The Raytheon AN/PSC-5D is a lightweight multi-band/multi-mission terminal for tactical line-of-sight voice and data communications in the VHF and UHF frequency spectrum with frequency-agile modes, SATCOM, Demand Assigned Multiple Access (DAMA), and maritime operation. The radio has embedded encryption, as well as SINCGARS and Have Quick I and II operation modes.

Special Operations forces are responsible for short-duration strikes and other small-scale offensive actions; special Reconnaissance; unconventional warfare; foreign internal defense; civil affairs operations; counter terrorism; psychological operations; information operations; counter-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction; security force assistance; counter insurgency operations; and other activities specified by the president or secretary of defense.

For more information contact Harris RF Communications online at http://rf.harris.com, or U.S. Special Operations Command at www.socom.mil.

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