Contracts totalling $36.5 million have been awarded under the US Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency's (DARPA) Joint Air/Ground Operations: Unified, Adaptive Re-planning (Jaguar) programme to demonstrate a computer-based system to streamline mission planning at US Air Force air operations centres. Involved are Charles Stark Draper Laboratory (common information environment); Lockheed Martin (plan understanding and monitoring associate); BBNT Solutions (model adaptation); Alphatech (plan generator); and Northrop Grumman (experiment design and evaluation). Orbital Sciences is to develop the medium-range target (MRT) launch vehicle for the US Missile Defence Agency under a $19 million contract. Capable of air, sea or ground launch, the MRT will support the THAAD and Aegis ballistic missile defence programmes. BAE Systems/Rockwell Collins joint venture Data Link Solutions has received a $56.6 million order for 216 multifunction information distribution system (MIDS) Link 16 terminals for US Navy Boeing F/A-18s, US Air Force Lockheed Martin F-16s and other platforms for Australia, Belgium, Norway, Poland and the USA. Northrop Grumman is to perform preventative maintenance and install modification kits and new centre-wing sections on EA-6B jamming aircraft under a $23 million US Navy contract, and repair outer wing panels under a separate $9.6 million contract. Boeing is to remanufacture three additional AH-64D Apache Longbows for the US Army under a $23.1 million contract. General Atomics has received an $11.9 million DARPA contract to demonstrate a time-dependant laser imaging system. GKN Aerospace Services has won a $4 billion contract to supply the Joint Strike Fighter with composite components for the control surfaces and edges for test aircraft in the system development and demonstration phase of the programme. The contract covers carbon composite detail components.
Source: Flight International
