Navy asks Progeny Systems to upgrade decision-support system for surface ship anti-submarine warfare
WASHINGTON – Systems integrators at Progeny Systems Corp. in Manassas, Va., will continue supporting and upgrading a U.S. Navy decision-support system designed to help Navy commanders plan submarine warfare attacks on enemy vessels.
Officials of the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) in Washington announced a $9.9 million contract to Progeny earlier this month for services and hardware systems in support of the AN/UYQ-100 Undersea Warfare Decision Support System (USW-DSS) command and control program.
The AN/UYQ-100 provides network-centric capability that enables Navy anti-submarine warfare (ASW) commanders to plan and coordinate destroyer and aircraft carrier operations against enemy submarines. The system enables commanders to establish and maintain a common tactical picture and execute tactical control, Navy officials say.
The USW-DSS installs open-architecture decision-making tools as software on computers aboard Navy Arleigh Burke-class destroyers, aircraft carriers, and shore installations. It enables commanders to share key tactical data among ASW surface ships, aircraft, and shore sites in near real-time, and is the only Navy program of record that provides an undersea warfare common tactical picture, Navy officials say.
The USW-DSS complements and provides an interface with common operational picture systems such as the Global Command and Control System-Maritime (GCCS-M), as well as Link 11 and Link 16 tactical data links.
When the AN/UYQ-100 is deployed on destroyers, the Navy's surface ship ASW combat system AN/SQQ-89 provides ship, sensor, and track data to USW-DSS. The CVN Tactical Support System (CV-TSC) provides this data when the system is installed on carriers.
These data sources enable USW-DSS to generate and share a composite track picture that enables ASW ships and aircraft to share weapons control. The systems's decision-support tools operate on existing shipboard computers and communications links.
Related: Navy orders AN/SQQ-89 surface ASW undersea warfare systems for cruisers and destroyers
The system's USW-DSS advanced capability build 2 (ACB-2) release 3 (B2R3) completed initial operational test and evaluation (IOT&E) in 2013. So far the USW-DSS has been delivered to 35 surface warships and aircraft carriers, and is operational at three shore commands and five training sites.
The latest system uses the Consolidated Afloat Network and Enterprise Services (CANES) computers and is installed as software. The AN/UYQ-100 has been operational with the fleet since 2010, and through 2019 Navy leaders plan to install the system on 65 ships and shore sites.
On this contract, Progeny Systems will do the work in Manassas and Norfolk, Va.; Keyport, Wash.; Charleroi, Pa.; and San Diego, and should be finished by November 2020. For more information contact Progeny Systems online at www.progeny.net, or Naval Sea Systems Command at www.navsea.navy.mil.
John Keller | Editor-in-Chief
John Keller is the Editor-in-Chief, Military & Aerospace Electronics Magazine--provides extensive coverage and analysis of enabling electronics and optoelectronic technologies in military, space and commercial aviation applications. John has been a member of the Military & Aerospace Electronics staff since 1989 and chief editor since 1995.
