Medium Range Surveillance from Coast Guard gets final C4ISR mission system pallets

Posted by John McHaleMOORESTOWN, N.J., 12 March 2011. The ninth C4ISR -- command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance -- mission system pallets for the U.S. Coast Guard's Medium Range Surveillance (MRS) aircraft were delivered by Lockheed Martin.The pallet provides the aircraft with the real-time situational awareness, improved surveillance, mission data recording, and enhanced secure data encryption capabilities needed for search and rescue, drug interdiction and other national security missions. This is the final delivery of the Lockheed Martin pallets, which have roll-on/roll-off capability enabling multiple missions. By removing the pallet, the aircraft have the cargo capacity necessary for humanitarian relief and evacuation missions. "By collaborating closely with Coast Guard personnel throughout the process and incorporating their ideas real-time, we delivered the C4ISR systems on budget and on schedule," says Dan Schultz, vice president of Lockheed Martin's Ship and Aviation Systems. "The Coast Guard has used our systems to track the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, direct aid following the earthquake in Haiti and thwart attempts to smuggle drugs into our country."The C4ISR mission system pallets' commonality enables the MRS aircraft to share information with other Coast Guard air, sea, and shore assets. Its interoperability allows the aircraft to communicate with other government agencies and organizations.Lockheed Martin has delivered a total of 12 MRS aircraft mission system pallets since 2007. In addition to the MRS pallets, Lockheed Martin is also providing the C4ISR system for the Coast Guard's first four National Security Cutters and it developed and installed the missionization packages in the HC-130-J aircraft.