TeleCommunication Systems (TCS), Northrop Grumman [NOC] and Lockheed Martin [LMT] have teamed to offer a protected communication satellite terminal in both stationary and mobile variants.
The Low Cost Terminal (LCT) addresses what the trio perceives as the military’s need for lower cost technologies and systems to enable protected and secure communications for tactical warfighters in theater, according to a statement. LCT is composed of two variants: The mobile Protected Communications on the Move (P-COTM) and the stationary, or “At-the-Halt,” Protected SIPR/NIPR Access Point (P-SNAP). The goal of the LCT solution, developed entirely with company investment, is enabling assured and secure mission command at levels below the brigade combat team anywhere in the world.
The mobile P-COTM, developed jointly by Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman, is interoperable with Milstar and Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF) satellite systems currently in orbit. P-COTM electronics transmit at 256 Kbps and receive at 1.544 Mbps with an uplink performance of 256 Kbps in rain or jamming environments. P-COTM, which features a low-profile, dome-shaped antenna, was developed in three years, half the time of development cycles for fielded Milstar- and AEHF-compatible terminals, according to a statement.
The stationary P-SNAP, developed in in collaboration with Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman, incorporates both SIPR/NIPR Access Point (SNAP) and P-COTM components. P-SNAP is packaged in three transit cases and two people can set up the system in 30 minutes. P-SNAP is designed to support modular quick-change feeds and upgrade kits to provide backward compatibility for traditional SNAP operations in Ku- and Ka-bands. P-SNAP also transmits data at 256 Kbps and receives at 1.544 Mbps with an uplink performance of 256 Kbps in rain or jamming environments.
Northrop Grumman Vice President and Deputy General Manager for Aerospace Systems Fred Ricker said recently during a press briefing the agreement is a 50/50 deal between Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman. TCS will manufacture, market and sell LCT products under license from Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman.
Lyle Bien, a former three-star admiral who has done some consulting work for Northrop Grumman, said recently an attractive part of LCT is that it costs one-tenth of what it would cost for the government to procure it itself. Ricker said one way the team was able to do that was by eliminating costly requirements, reusing commercial designs and leveraging previous investments. Ricker would not divulge the amount invested in LCT.
Ricker said potential competitors to LCT include Raytheon [RTN], Harris [HRS] and L-3 Communications [LLL]. LCT needs a sponsor to gain National Security Agency (NSA) certification and Ricker said the companies have been talking “very closely” with Army about sponsoring the program.
“We think that is a natural place to go and those discussions have started,” Ricker said. “We’ve, however, been informing other services, including the Air Force, about the existence of this terminal and the fact we are seeking a sponsor, so a sponsor could come from any number of places.”