The NATO Communications and Information (NCI) Agency awarded to the Czech company ERA a.s. a $22 million contract to provide two Deployable Passive ESM (Electronic System Measure) Trackers (or DPET) for NATO Air Command and Control.
The contract announced May 11 is financed from the NATO Security Investment Program and is to be completed in the summer 2018, ERA said in a separate statement.
The contract was signed by NCI Agency General Manager Koen Gijsbers and ERA Managing Director Victor Sotona in the presence of the Czech deputy Ambassador/Minister Counselor Petr Chalupecky.
“It is a major achievement of our company, which crowns our long-term efforts in cooperation with NATO,” Sotona said. “NATO defines requirements for a new system of air defense that would rely on a variety of sensors. One of them is the VERA-type passive surveillance system. NATO puts great emphasis on mobility and possibility of transport by Alliance’s standard transport aircraft and demands high climatic resistance and reliability of the system. This project is, above all, an important international reference, which can help us open the way to other customers. For ERA, this contract also means an opportunity for growth, extending our capacities and creating new jobs.”
These two systems, to be delivered within three years, will provide NATO with a capability to deploy Deployable Passive ESM (Electronic Support Measure) sensors to operational theaters as part of a Deployable ACCS capability that will support NATO’s deployed operations.
This DPET system is a mobile tactical component carried in a shelter that detects and tracks aircraft at long range through the detection and processing of pulsed emissions from the aircraft.
The DPET system will consist of a Central Site and multiple Remote Sites comprising sensors, communications and processing modules. The system includes trucks, trailers and generators, and can easily be transported to the theater of operations and then quickly become operational.
The system will be designed to support challenging environmental conditions using multiple modes of transportation.
The basis of the ERA solution for the DPET system is the existing VERA-NG product already in service with the Czech army with further enhancements based on the NATO DPET requirements.
The contract also covers optional Contractor Logistic Support for an extended period of operational use. This will be considered later in close coordination with the NATO Support Agency.