Air Force extends Northrop's BACN award

• Tweet

SAN DIEGO, July 25 (UPI) -- Northrop Grumman will continue operating an airborne communications and information gateway system for U.S. overseas contingency operations.

The system is called the Battlefield Airborne Communications Node and is installed on three E-11A Bombardier Global Express BD-700 aircraft and three EQ-4B Block 20 Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicles.

Northrop Grumman said continued operations and maintenance of the systems come under two contract modifications from the U.S. Air Force worth a total of $156 million.

"BACN is making a tremendous difference for our warfighters," said Claude Hashem, vice president of network communications systems for Northrop Grumman Information Systems. "These awards are evidence of that invaluable support and the exceptional performance of the BACN program office."

BACN is a high-altitude, airborne communications and information gateway system that provides situational awareness and command and control coordination between warfighters and commanders through the use of computers and radio systems.

BACN, said Northrop Grumman, bridges and "extends voice communications and battlespace information from a variety of sources."

The first modification, for extending BACN service until next June, is worth $106 million. The second modification is for maintenance support of E-11A aircraft.

Northrop Grumman received the original contract for BACN in 2005.