Poland considers MEADS anti-missile radar

WASHINGTON -- A missile defense system the United States has no plans to deploy may find new life in Poland, where leaders Tuesday welcomed Vice President Joe Biden amid rising tensions over Russia's takeover of Crimea.

As Biden visited with President Bronislaw Komorowski in Warsaw, other Polish leaders met privately Tuesday with executives from MEADS International, the consortium developing the Medium Extended Air Defense System.

Poland selected MEADS International, and its main U.S. partner -- Lockheed Martin Corp. -- as one of four finalists for a contract worth up to $5 billion to modernize its air and missile defense systems.

If MEADS wins the competition, it would help boost business at Lockheed Martin in Salina, which developed the 360-degree search radar for the anti-missile system.
The other finalists for the Polish contract are a French consortium that includes Thales and MBDA, the Israeli government, and Massachusetts-based Raytheon, developer of the Patriot anti-missile system.

MEADS Dual Intercept Flight Test 02

The Medium Extended Air Defense System (MEADS) intercepted and destroyed two simultaneous targets attacking from opposite directions during a stressing demonstration of its 360-degree air and missile defense (AMD) capabilities at White Sands Missile Range, N.M. The flight test achieved all criteria for success. Learn more…

MEADS International, a multinational joint venture headquartered in Orlando, Fla., is the prime contractor for the MEADS system. Major subcontractors and joint venture partners are MBDA in Italy and Germany, and Lockheed Martin in the United States. The MEADS program management agency NAMEADSMA is located in Huntsville, Ala.

LONGBOW LLC Receives $51 Million Contract for Republic of Korea Apache Radar Systems

The LONGBOW Limited Liability Company, a joint venture of Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman, has received a $51 million foreign military sales contract to provide the Republic of Korea with LONGBOW Fire Control Radars (FCRs) for the AH-64E Apache attack helicopter.

The contract includes six LONGBOW FCR systems, spares and in-country support. Production is scheduled through 2016, with assembly of the LONGBOW FCR performed at Lockheed Martin’s Ocala and Orlando, Fla., facilities, and Northrop Grumman's Baltimore, Md., facility.

“The Republic of Korea is the 10th international customer for LONGBOW systems,” said Tom Eldredge, LONGBOW LLC president and director of LONGBOW programs at Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control. “The LONGBOW FCR is a battle-proven radar system that will provide Republic of Korea Apache pilots with increased situational awareness, survivability and lethality.”

“The LONGBOW FCR team will provide the Republic of Korea with a product that promotes greater regional security and provides warfighters with the highest level of protection while increasing the international Apache footprint,” said Mike Galletti, director of the Tactical Sensor Solutions-Aviation business unit for Northrop Grumman’s Land and Self Protection Systems Division.

Since 1998, LONGBOW FCR has provided Apache aircrews with target detection, location, classification and prioritization. In all weather, over multiple terrains and through any battlefield obscurant, the radar allows automatic and rapid multitarget engagement.

Source: Lockheed Martin Corporation

Missile defense system fight in Washington puts Lockheed's Syracuse-area jobs in crosshairs

Photo supplied by Lockheed Martin Corp.This is the first publicly released photo of a prototype of the MEADS missile defense system surveillance radar that was designed and developed at the Lockheed plant in Salina, NY, for the U.S. Army. The surveillance radar can search 360-degrees for incoming missiles, planes and drones and be hauled around on the back of a truck.

Washington, D.C. -- Hundreds of Central New York workers building a long-delayed missile defense system could lose their jobs if Congress proceeds with a plan to eliminate the program’s funding.

Lockheed Martin’s plant in Salina has a $625 million share of the multibillion-dollar contract to design and develop the Medium Extended Air Defense System, or MEADS.

About 325 Lockheed engineers and technicians in Salina have been building two radars to spot and track enemy missiles, fighter jets or drones — and target them with interceptor missiles.

The United States, with partners Germany and Italy, already has spent $3.4 billion to develop its replacement of the Army’s aging Patriot missile defenses.

LONGBOW LLC Awarded $86 Million to Support and Sustain U.K. Apache Attack Helicopters

ORLANDO, FL, February 22nd, 2010 — The LONGBOW Limited Liability Company, a joint venture of Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman, was recently awarded an $86 million contract from AgustaWestland to support LONGBOW FCR systems on the United Kingdom Apache AH Mk-1 aircraft.

“The LONGBOW FCR is an essential element of U.K. Apache operations in Afghanistan,” said Jerry Garman, LONGBOW LLC president and director of LONGBOW programs at Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control. “Through this partnership with AgustaWestland, we will ensure the highest operational availability and system reliability at the lowest sustainment cost”.

The four-year contract includes engineering services, integrated logistics and an in-country repair capability. Support services will continue through March 2014, and will be performed at Wattisham Airfield in the U.K.; Lockheed Martin facilities in Ocala and Orlando, FL; and Northrop Grumman facilities in Baltimore, MD.

The contract is a component of the integrated operational support provided by AgustaWestland to the Ministry of Defence. A formal signing ceremony at the U.K. Apache main operating base at Wattisham Airfield in October marked the launch of this effort.

For more than a decade, the LONGBOW FCR has provided Apache aircrews with target detection, location, classification and prioritization. In all weather, over multiple terrains and through any battlefield obscurant, the radar allows automatic and rapid multi-target engagement. The LONGBOW FCR integrates with the M299 smart launcher and the LONGBOW HELLFIRE missile, enhancing the Apache’s lethality fourfold and increasing survivability sevenfold.

Northrop Grumman Corporation is a global defense and technology company whose 120,000 employees provide innovative systems, products and solutions in information and services, electronics, aerospace and shipbuilding to government and commercial customers worldwide.

Source: Lockheed Martin