Military looks to Disan Engineering to provide backplane interconnect for C-130 aircraft

COLUMBUS, Ohio, 17 Feb. 2014. U.S. military logistics experts needed an electronic backplane interconnect system for the Lockheed Martin C-130 four-engine turboprop utility aircraft. They found their solution from Disan Engineering Corp., a military electronics manufacturer in Nowata, Okla.

Officials of the Defense Logistics Agency Land & Maritime segment in Columbus, Ohio, have announced plans to solicit a long-term contract with Disan Engineering for a multi-layer rigid and flex interconnect assembly that connects about 1,500 circuits for the navigation system in the C-130 aircraft.

The Disan 11250 design provides the interconnections internally, as well as provides shielded paths for many of the circuits. Some shielded circuits consist of several leads encased in a flexible shield, which is subsequently encased in a flexible master layer shield.

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The interconnect product is for the Teledyne AN/APN-218 Doppler radar navigation system on the C-130 aircraft. The system also is for the Boeing B-1B bomber, Boeing B-52G/H bomber, and Boeing KC-135 mid-air refueling aircraft.

The terminations of the flex circuits are done on a rigid multi-layer printed circuit board to alleviate the normal separation problems typically found in flex circuitry.

Related: Lockheed Martin to upgrade obsolete data and graphics processors in C-130 aircraft displays

Disan is the Defense Logistics Agency's approved source for this item, and to ensure some level of competition, agency officials are asking industry if any companies other than Disan would like to become approved sources for the interconnect product. The agency does not have any drawings or specifications for the Disan 11250 backplane interconnect, officials say.

Companies interested in becoming approved sources for the interconnect should respond no later than today, 17 Feb. 2014. Defense Logistics Agency officials say they need about 34 of these interconnect products each year.

Related: Lockheed Martin chooses AVIATOR 700D SATCOM avionics for block 8.1 upgrade to C-130J military turboprop aircraft

Companies interested in becoming approved sources for the backplane interconnect should email the Defense Logistics Agency's Charles Mielke at [email protected].

Necessary documents and additional information are online at https://www.fbo.gov/spg/DLA/J3/DSCC/SPE7MX-13-R-0067 /listing.html.

For more information contact Disan Engineering Corp. online at www.disancorp.com.