The Marine Corps’ AN/TPS-80 Ground/Air Task Oriented Radar (G/ATOR) moved into low-rate initial production (LRIP) after a Jan. 24 Milestone C decision by the assistant secretary of the Navy for research, development and acquisition, and the service hopes to award an LRIP Lot 1 contract in the third quarter of fiscal year 2014.

LRIP Lot 1 would deliver four radars and spares in the third quarter of FY ’16. Lot 2 would follow close behind, awarding funding for two more radars as soon as FY ’15 money becomes available, Program Executive Office for Land Systems spokesman Dave Branham told sister publication Defense Daily

. He said no more details on cost and schedule would be available until the LRIP contract is awarded.

The Milestone C decision follows successful developmental testing, operational assessment and a Marine Corps Production Readiness Review last year. Program officials brought G/ATOR out as an observer to a Weapons and Tactics Instruction exercise in Yuma, Ariz., last year, and the radar ended up taking over during the exercise when several legacy systems failed.

“G/ATOR has demonstrated operational capabilities that will fundamentally change how the Marine Corps detects, tracks and engages a broad range of target sets,” Jeffrey Palombo, vice president and general manager of Northrop Grumman‘s [NOC] Land and Self Protection Systems Division, said in a company statement. “It’s the most mature S-Band AESA, air-cooled ground radar system. The benefit of open architecture design and the ability to scale the system technology permits this product line to meet a multitude of ground and ship-based radar missions and capabilities.”

Branham said the program office expects the Navy assistant secretary to sign the acquisition decision memorandum regarding the Milestone C decision soon.

As production of the first radar units begins, the Marine Corps is also working on Block 2 of its G/ATOR software, with a Block 2 development request for proposals set to be released in late FY ’14, Branham said. The software-only development would add counter-battery/target acquisition capability to the G/ATOR hardware. The program office anticipates the software to reach initial operational capability in 2018, he added.