PATUXENT RIVER NAS, Md. – U.S. Navy combat aviation experts needed antennas and other RF and microwave equipment to upgrade aircraft navigation and guidance capability aboard Navy ships. They found a solution from Thales USA in Overland Park, Kan.
Officials of Naval Air Systems Command at Patuxent River Naval Air Station, Md., announced a $10.5 million contract to Thales on Monday for 11 OE-4691 tactical air navigation (TACAN) antenna systems for Navy aircraft carriers, amphibious assault ships, destroyers, frigates, and shore sites.
In addition to the antennas, the contract includes 196 high power assemblies, 49 low power assemblies, and 49 remote monitor and maintenance controllers, as well as associated data, to upgrade existing shipboard TACAN systems.
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A part of the contract is for TACAN support for new ship construction of all air capable ships, providing range and bearing information to equipped aircraft.
TACAN and related shipboard Landing Systems provide all-weather airborne instrument recovery for Navy and Marine Corps aircraft, including precision approach and landing capabilities, ship-relative navigation, and non-precision approach capabilities.
The Tactical Air Navigation System (TACAN) military aircraft navigation system provides bearing and distance to an RF and microwave station on the ground or aboard naval ships.
TACAN essentially, it is a more accurate version of the VHF omnidirectional range (VOR) and distance-measuring equipment (DME) radio beacon that provides bearing and range information for commercial and general-aviation aircraft.
Military aircraft use TACAN for enroute navigation and non-precision approaches to airports, landing fields, and ships equipped to land aircraft.
On this contract Thales will do the work in Salt Lake City, and should finish by November 2026. For more information contact Thales USA online at www.thalesgroup.com/en/countries/americas/united-states, or Naval Air Systems Command at www.navair.navy.mil.
