Army awards contracts totaling nearly a billion dollars to DRS and L-3 to produce electro-optical weapon sights

ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md., 17 June 2011. Two U.S. military electro-optics companies won contracts totaling nearly one billion dollars Thursday to produce a multi-sensor infantry weapon sight designed to provide vast enhancements in the accuracy of infantry rifles, machine guns, and remote weapons stations on armored combat vehicles.The DRS Technologies Reconnaissance, Surveillance and Target Acquisition (RSTA) segment in Melbourne, Fla., and the L-3 Communications (NYSE:LLL) Warrior Systems Division in Londonderry, N.H., won contracts worth a combined $953.1 million to produce the AN/PSQ-23 Small Tactical Optical Rifle Mounted (STORM) Micro-Laser Rangefinder (MLRF).The 1.2-pound AN/PSQ-23 STORM MLRF electro-optical weapon sight operates on infantry rifles, machine guns, and the remote weapons station of the STRYKER armored combat vehicle. It combines laser rangefinder, AN/PEQ-2A aiming light, the Multiple Integrated Laser Engagement System, digital compass, and a visible pointer in a weapon-mounted aiming sight designed to compute and display accurate targeting information.

When combined with a global positioning system (GPS) receiver, the AN/PSQ-23 STORM MLRF lightweight weapon sight also can display accurate target locations. The system is powered by two DL 123 batteries. The system was developed under supervision of the U.S. Army Program Executive Office Soldier (PEO Soldier) at Fort Belvoir, Va.

Awarding the contract Thursday were officials of the U.S. Army Contracting Command, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md. DRS won a $514.3 million firm-fixed-price contract, and L-3 won a $438.8 million firm-fixed-price contract. The two companies each will provide between 150 and 32,000 AN/PSQ-23 STORM MLRF systems to the U.S. Army.

AN/PSQ-23 STORM MLRF weapon sight has a maximum range of more than six miles, a minimum range of 82 feet, electro-optical pointer and illuminator that function in starlight conditions, infrared illumination and pointing maximum range of about a mile, and measures 6.5 inches long, 2.35 inches high, and two inches wide.

For more information contact DRS RSTA online at www.drs.com/Products/RSTA, L-3 Warrior Systems at www.insighttechnology.com, Army PEO Soldier at https://peosoldier.army.mil, or the Army Contracting Command at www.acc.army.mil.