ARLINGTON, Va., April 28 (UPI) -- BAE Systems in Virginia has added Northrop Grumman Corp. to its Joint Light Tactical Vehicle team, which includes Navistar Defense and Meritor Defense.
Northrop Grumman will serve as the C4ISR (command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance) lead, responsible for the integration of command-and-control hardware and software, computers and communications equipment, sensors and sensor suites for intelligence gathering and force protection.
BAE said Thursday that by applying Northrop Grumman and BAE Systems' substantial domain expertise, the team will develop a Net-ready, open architecture system that will allow the warfighter to configure the JLTV platform rapidly and inexpensively for current and future mission needs.
"Our decision to team with one of the world's leaders in C4ISR recognizes the growing importance of situational awareness, information sharing, and command and control on the battlefield, both for vehicles and dismounted soldiers," said Ann Hoholick, vice president and general manager of amphibious and new programs at BAE Systems. "Northrop Grumman will help us ensure that we provide the kind of scalable solutions the military needs, at an affordable price."
The BAE Systems team is participating in the Technology Development phase of the JLTV program and plans to compete for the next phase of the program -- engineering and manufacturing development. The U.S. Army has announced plans to award up to two contracts for the EMD phase.
