NEW YORK, April 20 (UPI) -- DRS Technologies has received a $26 million contract to provide subsystems for the U.S. Army's Long Range Advanced Scout Surveillance System.
Dubbed LRAS3, the system will provide future Army scouts and reconnaissance units with a means of long-range target detection and identification.
The contract announced Thursday comes from prime contractor Raytheon and calls for technology from DRS' Optronics unit in Florida where electro-optical instruments are designed. Deliveries will run through the end of the year.
"DRS is a market leader of second-generation infrared ground vehicle sighting, targeting and detection systems, and we play a key role in the Army's Horizontal Technology Integration initiative and its modernization strategy," said Fred Marion, president of DRS's Surveillance & Reconnaissance Group. "The LRAS3 remains a key program in our ground vehicle systems product line."
DRS says it has thus far booked more than $142 million in orders for the LRAS3, which is designed as a stopgap measure in the transition from current reconnaissance capabilities to the Army's ambitious Future Combat Systems.
The backbone of the LRAS3 is Forward Looking Infrared (FLIR) equipment that can be mounted on a Humvee or M1025 scout vehicle, or set up on a tripod on the ground. The night-vision gear is linked to a standard video camera, global-positioning and laser range-finding equipment to provide 24-hour coverage of an area or a potential target.
The system is earmarked primarily for brigade and battalion-sized units, including Stryker Brigade Combat Teams.
