SAN DIEGO, Aug. 6, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- The U.S. Air
Force has awarded Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) an
$89.7 million contract option to
continue operating and supporting the Battlefield Airborne
Communications Node (BACN) system in support of overseas
contingency missions.
BACN is a high-altitude, airborne communications and information
gateway that connects warfighters in the air and on the ground. The
system translates and distributes voice communications, video,
imagery and other battlespace information from numerous, often
disparate, sources to improve situational awareness and enable
better coordination among warfighters and commanders.
The Air Force has deployed four BACN E-11A systems and three
BACN EQ-4B Global Hawk systems in support of Operation Enduring
Freedom.
"BACN is making such a tremendous difference for our warfighters
that it is regarded as indispensable for mission success," said
Jeannie Hilger, vice president and
general manager, communications division, Northrop Grumman
Information Systems. "The amount of positive feedback BACN receives
from our warfighters is a testament to the critical support BACN
currently provides and an inspiration to continuously enhance the
system's capabilities."
To make BACN a permanent capability, the Air Force is working to
establish BACN as a program of record.
Northrop Grumman envisions BACN serving as a persistent high
altitude gateway in the Joint Aerial Layer Network (JALN) to
provide secure communications to disadvantaged warfighters and
network connectivity across the battlespace. JALN will be a robust
system of systems that expands on existing communications networks
and capabilities and links ground, space and airborne military
assets.
Northrop Grumman was awarded the first BACN contract in
April 2005 by the Air Force Life
Cycle Management Center, Hanscom Air Force Base, Massachusetts. Since the system was deployed
in 2008, it has delivered near 24/7 coverage in theater with system
availability rates above 98 percent.
Northrop Grumman is a leading global security company providing
innovative systems, products and solutions in unmanned systems,
cyber, C4ISR, and logistics and modernization to government and
commercial customers worldwide. Please visit
www.northropgrumman.com for more information.
SOURCE Northrop Grumman Corporation