Scottsdale, Ariz., 30 July 2008. General Dynamics C4 Systems, a business unit of General Dynamics, won a $23 million contract for AN/USC-61(C) Digital Modular Radios (DMRs), the Navy's standard communications system for newly constructed ships and submarines.

Deliveries are scheduled to begin in mid-2009 and continue though 2010.

The software-defined DMRs communicate with Ultra-High Frequency SATCOM, Single-Channel Ground and Airborne Radio Systems (SINCGARS), Line of Sight, and high-frequency radios on Navy surface and subsurface platforms.

"By replacing what used to be racks of radios and encryption equipment, one DMR radio represents considerable savings in size, weight, and power to the Navy," says Chris Brady, vice president of Assured Communications for General Dynamics C4 Systems. "The expertise we've gained from executing on the DMR program is particularly relevant now as we work with Lockheed Martin in the development of the Airborne and Maritime/Fixed Station component of the Joint Tactical Radio System."

The DMR contracting office is the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command, working on behalf of the Program Executive Office for Command Control Communications Computers and Intelligence, San Diego, Calif.