More orders for LITENING targeting pods

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ROLLING MEADOWS, Ill., Feb. 13 (UPI) -- The U.S. Air Force has contracted Northrop Grumman to supply additional LITENING SE advanced targeting pods.

The pods, which are mounted externally on an airplane's wings, contain a forward-looking infrared sensor to display target images to the plane's crew and a laser designator to guide munitions to the target.

Northrop said the work for low-rate production of the system came in the form of two follow-on contracts worth a combined $66 million.

The Air Force awarded Northrop a seven-year indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for low rate initial production of the pods in 2010. The pods have been tested extensively on F-16 Block 40/50 aircraft and on the A-10C.

"Getting advanced capability into the hands of the warfighter is a team effort. The combined efforts of the joint U.S. Air Force-Northrop Grumman test team resulted in the expedited completion of the LITENING SE qualification and evaluation flight testing program," said Jim Mocarski, vice president of the LITENING program at Northrop Grumman.