MELBOURNE, June 22 (UPI) -- Australia's Defense Materiel Organization awarded BAE Systems Australia another contract to produce hovering decoy rockets, the company announced.
The contract, which extends production to 2013, is worth about $35 million. It is the 12th successive annual contract given to BAE for the "Nulka," an aboriginal word meaning "be quick."
The Nulka Active Missile Decoy system supplements "hard-kill" naval defense systems such as missiles and guns. When launched from a vessel it flies in a controllable semi-hover pattern and emits I/J-band signals to lure an inbound missile away from the targeted ship towards itself.
Unlike the softer counter-measure, chaff, it isn't affected by issues of wind and Doppler discrimination electronic counter countermeasures.
BAE says the Nulka Active Missile Decoy system is used by more than 130 Australian, U.S. and Canadian warships.
BAE is the prime contractor for the system. Aerojet, a GenCorp subsidiary, manufactures the rocket motor and Lockheed Martin provides the s electronic warfare package for it.
