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Northrop Grumman Corp. in Melbourne, FL received a $7.8 million fixed price incentive firm contract modification. This contract definitizes a change order involving the electronics and radar antennas of the E-8C J-STARS aircraft.
JSTARS provides a picture of the ground situation equivalent to that of the air situation provided by AWACS. JSTARS is capable of determining the direction, speed and patterns of military activity of ground vehicles and helicopters. It then sends this information via secure data links with air force command posts, army mobile ground stations and centres of military analysis around the world.
This change order has now been clarified as qualification, test, documentation and installation design for replacement of Antenna Servo Electronics (ASE) shop replaceable units on the JSTARS fleet; redesign and qualification of key circuit card assemblies in the ASE; preparation of a Time Compliance Technical Order (TCTO) and procurement and fabrication of an ASE level Time Compliance Technical Order kit; installation and ‘kit proof’ of the TCTO kit, and integration of the modernized Antenna Servo Electronics into the AN/APY-3 Radar Sensor configuration.
This effort also includes redesign of the phase shifters to resolve current design and material issues as well as purchase of 19 phase shifters and two spares for evaluation in the GFE antenna.
Negotiations were completed September 2005, and work will be complete by September 2007. The Headquarters Electronic Systems Center at Hanscom Air Force Base, MA issued the contract (F19628-02-C-0022-PZ0087).