Raytheon, an aerospace and defense systems manufacturer and technology innovator headquartered in Waltham, MA, has announced that it has received a contract for building the prototype of the Ku Band MFRFS (Multi-Function RF System) Sense and Warn (S&W) radars.
The contract, worth $45.5 million has been awarded by the US Army in an effort to boost the performance of the C-RAM (Counter Rocket Artillery and Mortar) S&W systems, which have been deployed at forward operating bases.
As per the terms of the contract, Raytheon will acquire long-lead subsystems and materials required for building the prototype of the Ku Band MFRFS prototype systems. The system will leverage the technology Raytheon has developed for the Future Combat Systems program. Raytheon has created, tested and deployed in a matter of 14 months, a Low Quadrant Elevation MFRFS C-RAM S&W system as a precursor to the Ku Band MFRFS system. Additionally, 18 Low QE systems developed for C-RAM will soon be deployed.
The Ku Band MFRFS and the Low QE MFRFS systems have been developed to improve S&W times, eliminate false alarms to a large extent, and enhance the coverage of fielded C-RAM systems. The Ku Band system will minimize logistics cost and provide better performance.
The Vice President – Combat & Sensing Systems at Raytheon, Glynn Raymer stated that the completion of the MFRFS C-RAM mission will provides advanced life-saving capability to the warfighters. Their chances of survival will be vastly improved by providing the uniformed men and women with warning of the incoming threats. Raymer added that by employing existing technology, the risk and the cost associated with fielding the improved C-RAM systems will also be minimized.
Source: http://www.raytheon.com/