The AOEW system will provide MH-60 helicopters with enhanced electronic warfare surveillance and countermeasure capabilities against anti-ship missile (ASM) threats.
The US Navy awarded Lockheed Martin a $42 million contract for the system design and development phase, with the company expecting to be awarded the EMD phase of the contract, which has options for six units, later this year.
The AOEW AMP AN/ALQ-248 can work independently or with the ship’s onboard electronic surveillance sensor, SEWIP Block 2 AN/SLQ-32(V)6, to detect an incoming missile and then evaluate where it is going. AOEW then uses radio frequency countermeasure techniques to deter the missile.
Joe Ottaviano, Lockheed Martin’s Electronic Warfare Programme Director said: “The battlefield at sea is constantly changing. Our Advanced Off-Board Electronic Warfare capabilities will give the U.S. Navy a powerful tool to detect threats and respond to our adversaries”
Construction of the AOEW systems in New York is scheduled to begin in early 2018. The Owego, New York, team will integrate the system onto the MH-60 helicopters, which are built by Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin Company.
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Advanced Off-Board Electronic Warfare system AOEW Lockheed Martin MH-60 helicopters Preliminary Design Review US Navy