September 10, 2009
ROLLING MEADOWS, Ill. - Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) today announced the formation of a strategic alliance with SELEX Galileo, a Finmeccanica company, to compete for the U.S. Army's Common Infrared Countermeasures (CIRCM) program.
CIRCM is intended to provide the U.S. military with a
laser-based infrared (IR) countermeasures solution against current and
future IR threat systems. For the CIRCM program, the Northrop
Grumman-SELEX Galileo team has integrated the ECLIPSE micro
pointer/tracker with a processing and laser countermeasures capability
to produce a 4th generation lightweight, highly reliable Directional
Infrared Countermeasures (DIRCM) system specifically designed for
medium and light helicopter protection.
SELEX Galileo began development of its Economic Compact
Lightweight Pointer-Tracker System (ECLIPSE) in 2007. An ECLIPSE
development model was integrated with the Northrop Grumman Viper(tm)
IRCM laser, processor and missile warner in a highly successful live
fire demonstration in 2008 at the Tonopah Missile Range in Nevada. In
this test, the ECLIPSE prototype micro pointer/tracker successfully
acquired, tracked and defeated an infrared missile in flight.
"The Northrop Grumman-SELEX Galileo team represents the most
experienced laser IRCM development and production capability in the
industry with three generations of DIRCM systems developed, and over
1,200 pointer trackers and 1,100 lasers produced, for 450 aircraft
installations on 50 different aircraft types including large and small
fixed wing, rotary wing and tilt wing," said Carl Smith, vice president
of Northrop Grumman's IRCM Products.
"The versatile, open architecture approach that this new system
is based upon will allow the customer to use existing equipment such as
missile warners and countermeasures dispensers--while improving the
survivability of these helicopters significantly with the addition of
modern, laser DIRCM capability--and allow continued future growth.
Backed by decades of investment, hundreds of thousands of operational
flight hours and actual helicopter combat experience, this team is
ready to protect the U.S. Army's warfighters," said Smith.
The only such aircraft protection system currently in full
production, Northrop Grumman's LAIRCM system is now installed or
scheduled for installation on several hundred military aircraft to
protect approximately 50 different types of large fixed-wing transports
and rotary-wing platforms from infrared missile attacks. The system
functions by automatically detecting a missile launch, determining if
it is a threat and activating a high-intensity laser-based
countermeasure system to track and defeat the missile.
"MANPADS (man-portable air defense systems) pose one of the
most serious threats to the army aviator operating in today's hostile
environments," said Norman Bone, senior vice president, Radar and
Advanced Targeting and Group Operations director, SELEX Galileo.
"Building on over twenty years of experience within this field, we are
now able to provide a lightweight low cost directed countermeasure
solution based on the ECLIPSE pointer tracker, to protect helicopter
platforms from the latest generations of missiles. We are proud to
support the U.S. Army and look forward to continuing our partnership
with Northrop Grumman for many years to come."
SELEX Galileo provides world class capabilities in
surveillance, protection, tracking, targeting, avionics and imaging
systems. With industrial presence in the UK, Italy and U.S., the
Company builds on 60 years of experience and market presence in more
than 70 countries.
Northrop Grumman Corporation is a global defense and technology
company whose 120,000 employees provides innovative systems, products,
and solutions in information and services, electronics, aerospace and
shipbuilding to government and commercial customers worldwide.
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