Northrop Grumman prepares IBCS for initial operational test and evaluation

Air March 25, 2021

Northrop Grumman has successfully completed hardware refresh, refurbishment and return of major end items (MEI) for the Integrated Air and Missile Defense Battle Command System (IBCS) to the US Army.

The MEIs include engagement operations centers (EOC), integrated fire control network (IFCN) relays, and integrated collaborative environments (ICE), components of IBCS that have been in use by the US Army since delivery. Most recently, these MEIs were employed in the harsh desert climate of the White Sands Missile Range during last year’s IBCS Limited User Test (LUT).

Following successful completion of the LUT, 24 IBCS MEIs were delivered to Northrop Grumman’s Huntsville Manufacturing Center and then received, inspected and assessed for physical and functional performance issues.

Based on inspection results, MEIs received replacement parts and were re-assessed before being returned to the Army for field acceptance testing leading up to IBCS’ next major event: initial operational test and evaluation (IOT&E).

Kenn Todorov, Vice President and General Manager, combat systems and mission readiness, Northrop Grumman, said: “Since these MEIs were initially delivered, they have certainly been put through their paces, most notably during last year’s rigorous LUT.

“Our Huntsville Manufacturing Center is operational with the resident IBCS expertise to quickly and efficiently refurbish this equipment and return it to the Army for the next demanding IBCS test milestone.”

The IOT&E is a comprehensive test of IBCS system performance which will be conducted under realistic operational conditions prior to system employment. The IOT&E informs a Department of Defense and US Army initial operational capability decision.

IBCS is the centerpiece of the US Army’s modernisation strategy for air and missile defence to address the ever-changing nature of warfare. Designed to connect the forces for unified action across all domains against evolving threats, IBCS is a software-defined, network-enabled command and control system that integrates and optimises “any-sensor, best-effector” toward enabling joint multi-domain operations and command and control.