MOORESTOWN, N.J., 20 Feb. 2009. Lockheed Martin won from the U.S. Navy a contract to upgrade the MK 92 Fire Control System for Turkey's G-class guided-missile frigate shipboard electronics. The radar fire control system upgrade will support the introduction of the Evolved Sea Sparrow Missile (ESSM), providing enhanced self-protection capabilities for this class of surface warships, says a representative.
The MK 92 system, originally developed by Lockheed Martin, provides integrated x-band shipboard radar surveillance, target tracking, and weapon fire control capability for naval gun and missile systems.
Under the new Navy contract, Lockheed Martin engineers will design, develop, and integrate modifications necessary to support the new missile capability.
"The MK 92 upgrade represents the first U.S. Navy-sponsored sale of our solid-state continuous wave illumination transmitter to support ESSM deployment by navies around the world," says Stan Ozga, Lockheed Martin's director for Naval Radar Programs.
The upgrade, when combined with Lockheed Martin's MK41 Vertical Launching System, will allow increased self-defense capacity through the MK25 Quadpack canister enabling four ESSMs to be loaded in each MK41 cell. ESSM is a medium-range, quick-reaction missile designed to defeat stressing anti-ship cruise missiles.
More than 125 shipboard MK 92 systems have been produced and deployed with nine different navies around the world. It has been installed on more than 70 guided missile frigates, as well as on a variety of other surface ships including coast guard cutters, corvettes, and fast attack craft.
