Tim Ripley
Raytheon has lambasted its American rival in the $1.1 billion UK ASTOR contest, describing Northrop Grumman's entry as a "high risk, high cost solution" that will not be in service for some time.
The US defence electronics giant directed all its fire at Northrop Grumman's Joint STARS Radar Technology Improvement Program (RTIP) bid to supply the UK with an airborne ground surveillance system.
Northrop Grumman, meanwhile, is promising to team with a UK radar house if it wins the contest.
The two American companies are working on highly secret RTIP to completely revamp the radar and other systems on the Pentagon's Joint STARS fleet.
Upgrade
Peter Robbie, Raytheon's director of reconnaissance and surveillance systems, says they have not signed any agreement to cooperate on the upgrade technology for the UK ASTOR.
"The [US] Department of Defense asked Northrop Grumman and Raytheon to join together to develop the RTIP package," says Robbie. "Northrop Grumman can't do the RTIP by itself.
"Northrop Grumman is offering a two dimensional active array from a single antenna radar - this has never been done before," says Robbie. "It will need three years for critical design review and then three years before it flies so it will not be in service by the MoD required date. RTIP has no contract, and is not funded - it is only a concept."
Raytheon is offering a version of its ARAS-2 radar that is currently in service on the Lockheed U-2 spy aircraft.
"The ARAS Improvement Programme is making so many changes that it is not the same radar," says Robbie. "ARAS has been in service for 10 years and has been de-bugged completely. We can continue to upgrade it and take it well into the capability of the RTIP."
Robbie says Raytheon's ASTOR bid meets the UK's 'smart' procurement principles. "The Ministry of Defence wants the system at a fixed price, using commercial off the shelf technology, with a growth path to improve system over time, with low risk and they want it to enter service on time. [ARAS offers] totally inter-operability with US systems."
Raytheon claims its solution will create and maintain 2,000 jobs across the UK and a further 4,000 jobs could be created as a result of export orders.
Government
"Ownership of software codes is an issue for the UK," he says. "The UK is unlikely get access [to the RTIP codes]. The US Government will control capability of that radar. With our radar all the source code of the radar is exportable - a follow-on to ASTOR will be built in the UK as a UK product for export."
But, Northrop Grumman is also pledging a high work content if it is successful.
"We committed to put large portion [of the work] into the UK radar house," says Marty Dandridge, Northrop Grumman's vice-president and general manager, surveillance and battlefield management systems. "We have yet to establish a relationship with Racal or GEC but they will end up with the ability to deal with advanced technology radar."
Northrop Grumman says such a link-up could boost the direct workshare up to 60% with a UK radar house on board the Wizard Team. Wizard predicts 2,600 jobs would be created in the UK if the Ministry of Defence accepts its proposal to supply an improved version of its Joint STARS radar. "This is a unique opportunity to cooperate on a development programme," he says.
Danbridge describes Wizard as the strongest solution and best value to MOD. "Wizard offers significant potential for export - offering BAe, Computing Devices, and the radar house with team with an organic ASTOR capability in UK so as not to rely on US to support system.
"Wizard offers tomorrow's technology today - it does not require an update two or three years into service," says Danbridge.
Wizard programme manager Frank Drogaer says the RTIP radar being offered is a "low risk solution.""It could be risky if we didn't have the right credentials - we believe we have them."
Source: Flight Daily News
