RANCHO SANTA MARGARITA, Calif., 24 April 2006. Lockheed Martin has entered into a contract with Palomar Products, a subsidiary of Esterline Technologies. Palomar will provide its Secure Intercommunications Systems (ICS) for deployment on the Coast Guard's HC-130J long-range surveillance aircraft, as part of the U.S. Coast Guard's Integrated Deepwater System (IDS), a program designed to recapitalize the Coast Guard's aging vessels, aircraft, and electronics.

The Integrated Deepwater System (IDS) is a critical multi-year program to modernize and replace the Coast Guard's aging ships and aircraft, and improve command and control and logistics systems.

The ongoing command center recapitalization project will provide operational commanders with a command and control system that allows access to a common operational picture, near-real-time data collection, a secure communications channel, and the ability to communicate with regional and local first responders as well as the Coast Guard's counterparts in the Department of Defense (DoD).

The DoD's Global Command and Control System (GCCS) will serve as the Coast Guard's near-term means to integrate information and data from disparate sources.

Palomar Products is a subcontractor to Lockheed Martin, a partner in Integrated Coast Guard Systems (ICGS). ICGS is a joint venture between Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman and was awarded the Deepwater contract in June 2002 by the Coast Guard.

Palomar Products is a developer and manufacturer of secure audio and data distribution systems for military airborne and ground-based applications.