Missile manufacturers interested in producing the Army’s low-tier air and missile defense system (LTAMDS) can expect a milestone A decision from by the end of the month, according to an industry source.
Companies were required to submit responses to a request for information (RFI) on existing missile defense radars by Aug. 15. That solicitation sought industry input on upgrades to the Army’s existing Patriot missile defense radars that are technology readiness level 5 or above, meaning the systems exist in a state ready for real-world testing, by the end of fiscal 2017.
A decision whether to greenlight the program into technology maturation, which will lead to a formal competition, was expected sometime late this year. The Army and industry now expect it before the end of September, an industry source told Defense Daily.
The Army wants to replace the current Patriot radar to improve operational capability and reduce sustainment costs associated with the legacy system. Cost is of top concern. The Army lists average procurement unit cost (APUC) as second in a prioritized list of information it wanted in the RFI, based on the purchase or retrofit of 80 radars over a 10-year period. Only description of the system was more important to the Army.
The RFI specifically requests information on potential solutions with an average production unit cost of less than $50 million. Proposed systems must also meet or exceed all LTAMDS requirements recently approved via the Army Requirements Oversight Council (AROC) process and all existing PATRIOT radar requirements required to operate within the U.S. Army Integrated Air and Missile Defense (IAMD) network.
A milestone A decision means the Army has completed an analysis of alternatives (AoA), cost estimate and an approved capabilities development document, among other items that the milestone decision authority (MDA) will use to either halt or greenlight the program. A decision in the affirmative would send the program into the technology maturation and risk reduction (TMRR) phase of the Army’s established acquisition timeline, which will then progress to engineering and manufacturing development (EMD), production, and fielding. Immediately below cost the RFI asks for projected deadlines for TMRR, EMD, testing, production and fielding.
The Army has not launched a formal competition but three companies have thrown hats toward the ring that will open after a request for proposals (RFP): incumbent Patriot manufacturer Raytheon [RTN], Lockheed Martin [LMT] and Northrop Grumman [NOC].
Lockheed Martin was the first out of the gate when it last month announced it would respond to the RFI with a Gallium Nitride (Ga-N) advanced electronically scanned array (AESA) radar based on the Medium Extended Air Defense System (MEADS). Lockheed Martin also said it would pull technologies from its Space Fence, Long Range Discrimination Radar (LRDR), 3D Expeditionary Long Range Radar (3DELRR), AN/TPQ-53 and Aegis.
Raytheon made a formal announcement last week that it would compete, though it has already built a LTAMDS prototype and exhibited the system at an Army trade show in March.
Raytheon’s GaN-based AESA LTAMDS radar is designed to serve as a sensor on the Integrated Air and Missile Defense Battle Command System (IAMD-BCS) network. It was designed to interoperate with existing NATO systems and retain compatibility with both the current Patriot system and any future system upgrades fielded by any of the 13 nations that currently own Patriot.
Northrop Grumman has confirmed it will participate with an array based on the AN/TPS-80 Ground/Air Task Oriented Radar (G/ATOR) designed for expeditionary air defense by the Navy and Marine Corps.
The Army’s published plans are to spend an initial $35 million in fiscal 2015 to begin materials development, conduct an analysis of alternatives and a business case analysis, according to Army documents. Spending shoots up to a high of $93 million in fiscal 2018, then levels out to $85 million through 2021.