SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., 16 February 2005. The U.S. Army has merged its dismounted soldier activities, consolidating its Land Warrior and Future Force Warrior Advanced Technology Demonstration (ATD) programs. The consolidation will enable the Army to spiral new technology into the hands of U.S. soldiers sooner and create cost efficiencies.
Previously General Dynamics C4 Systems was responsible for the Army's Land Warrior program and General Dynamics Land Systems was responsible for the Future Force Warrior ATD. General Dynamics C4 Systems will now manage the merged effort.
"This consolidation gives the Army the efficiency of having a single prime contractor managing the complementary and mutually supporting efforts to develop new technologies and integrate soldier systems with combat platforms," said Carol Fitzgerald, the U.S. Army's Future Force Warrior Technology Program Manager. "It will enhance the Army's ability to bring technologies to soldiers quickly and more efficiently. We see this as a big 'win-win.'"
The change combines the development program and the ATD for more efficient execution and accelerates the fielding of leading edge battle command capabilities to individual soldiers and Army units of action. The consolidated effort forms the baseline for the Army's Ground Soldier Systems, one of several Army programs intended to develop, produce, test and field advanced capabilities beginning in 2005 that can also keep pace with the Future Force through 2014.
The restructured Land Warrior program will follow a spiral development strategy to introduce new technology to current and future forces. The initial increment equips soldiers with a dismounted battle command system that will provide situational awareness and communication.
The next increment provides a Stryker-equipped battalion with the current Land Warrior ensemble, featuring expanded situational awareness and tactical-level messaging, integrated lethality, Stryker vehicle-to-dismounted soldier communications, fratricide avoidance, and battery recharging. Follow-on increments will continue to improve ground soldier capabilities.
The U.S. Army intends to allocate $59 million in the 2006 budget to equip the Stryker experimental battalion, based on the successful completion of nearly four months of Land Warrior field-testing at Ft. Benning, Ga., in 2004. The testing included combat-proven soldiers of the Experimental Force conducting a successful side-by-side comparison of the Land Warrior system with equipment used in Iraq.
"The collaboration of General Dynamics C4 Systems with General Dynamics Land Systems, maker of the Stryker eight-wheeled combat vehicle, has an immediate benefit to soldiers," said Manny Mora, vice president of General Dynamics C4 Systems. "Together we'll build on the baseline established at Ft. Benning last year and continue to push the envelope on warrior-system integration. This will rapidly drive technology to soldiers on the battlefield while meeting the Army's desire to have an efficient program management structure."
"The exercises at Ft. Benning were an unprecedented success in terms of reliability of the ensemble, ease of use and functionality provided to the infantrymen," said Col. Ernest T. Forrest, Training and Doctrine Command System Manager-Soldier. "The Land Warrior program was able to showcase features representing a bold step in the advance of soldier systems."
Beginning later this year, General Dynamics expects to deliver as many as 500 Land Warrior systems to a Stryker battalion to develop new tactics, techniques and procedures, anticipating changes in the way soldiers can fight with these dramatically advanced capabilities.
The Land Warrior is an integrated, modular fighting system that uses technology to enhance individual soldiers' close-combat tactical awareness, lethality and survivability. The current $170 million contract includes a weapon-mounted system, an integrated helmet assembly, a communications- navigation computer system and software for friendly-force tracking and command/control programs. Future Force Warrior is a technology-development effort intended to create new capabilities for deployment that enhance the Ground Soldier suite of technologies and is interoperable with the Future Combat Systems.
General Dynamics C4 Systems is a leading integrator of secure communication and information systems and technology. With more than 9,000 employees worldwide, the company specializes in command and control, communications networking, space systems, computing and information assurance for defense, government and select commercial customers in the United States and abroad.
General Dynamics, headquartered in Falls Church, Va., employs approximately 70,200 people worldwide and had 2004 revenue of $19.2 billion. The company is a market leader in mission-critical information systems and technologies; land and expeditionary combat systems, armaments and munitions; shipbuilding and marine systems; and business aviation. For more information see www.generaldynamics.com.
