CARLSBAD, Calif., 6 Jan. 2006. ViaSat Inc. will supply Multi-functional Information Distribution System (MIDS) terminals, trusted filter security products, and systems engineering to Northrop Grumman Corp. in two contracts worth $3 million (excluding follow-on options for production and support).
The deals are a result of recent awards from the U.S. Air Force Electronic Systems Center to Northrop Grumman's Mission Systems sector to build the Battlefield Airborne Communications Node (BACN) and Joint Interface Control Officer (JICO) Support System (JSS) programs.
ViaSat content on BACN and JSS includes engineering in the areas of security architecture and certification and accreditation, adapting trusted filter products tailored to the needs of JSS, and delivery and integration of MIDS LVT(2) terminals.
BACN is designed to provide a bridge for linking communications among legacy radios, evolving Joint Tactical Radio Systems (JTRS) waveforms, and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance systems. BACN will also demonstrate cross-communication between U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Department of Defense networks. The Northrop Grumman team is planning to demonstrate BACN during Joint Expeditionary Force Experiment '06 (JEFX) in spring, 2006.
JSS will manage complex tactical networks through an automated toolset and information repository that enables planning, management and analysis of communications before, during and after operations. Joint interface control officers use the JSS for tactical communications in local or wide-area theaters of operations. The rugged, transportable system has all the digitized data and voice communications needed to support JICO and deploys rapidly in severe environments.
"We have a long relationship with Northrop Grumman Mission Systems and are eager to work with them again on the BACN and JSS programs," said Jerry Goodwin, vice president of Tactical Networking and Information Assurance at ViaSat. "These awards will take full advantage of ViaSat communications and security expertise to provide a superior system for DoD, and will expand the use of our Trusted Filter Cross Domain products to U.S. military and coalition networks."
ViaSat produces innovative satellite and other communication products that enable fast, secure, and efficient communications to any location. Products include satellite ground equipment, information security devices, tactical data radios, and communication simulators. ViaSat has a full line of VSAT products for data and voice applications, and is a market leader in Ka-band satellite systems, from user terminals to large gateways. ViaSat has locations in Carlsbad, Calif., and Duluth, Ga., along with its Comsat Laboratories division in Germantown, Md. Additional field offices are located in Boston, Mass., Washington DC, Australia, China, India, Italy, and Spain.
In addition the company has two wholly-owned subsidiaries: US Monolithics, based in Chandler, Ariz. designs and produces monolithic microwave integrated circuits (MMICs) and modules for use in broadband communications for military and commercial applications; and Efficient Channel Coding, based in Cleveland, Ohio is an innovator in satellite communication components and systems, based on the new DVB-S2 standard, that increase the efficiency of today's advanced satellite, wireless, and wire-line communication systems. For more information, see www.viasat.com.
