SCIENCE

Harris Corporation has received a $66.3 million order from the U.S. Army via the GSA, FAS Assisted Acquisition Services to provide Falcon III(R) AN/PRC-117G multiband manpack radios in support of the modernization of Brigade Combat Team tactical communications.

The Harris radios will become an integral part of the Army's emerging tactical network to connect all levels of the battlefield to robust, secure voice and wideband data communications. The AN/PRC-117G delivers enhanced command and control and situational awareness through applications such as streaming video, collaborative chat, biometric enrollment and secure network connectivity. The Army has identified development of the tactical network as its top modernization priority.

"This order validates the effectiveness of the Army's Network Integration Evaluation, which was created to identify and speed the delivery of tactical networking solutions to the edge," said Dana Mehnert, group president, Harris RF Communications. "The NIE has been a clear success and we look forward to continuing to work with the Army. As proven at the first NIE and in combat, the AN/PRC-117G delivers transformational voice and wideband networking capabilities to the soldier, including the first Type-1 implementation of the JTRS Soldier Radio Waveform."

At the first NIE in June and July at Fort Bliss, Texas and White Sands, N.M., Harris deployed 20- and 30-node AN/PRC-117G wideband networks that connected a range of military vehicles to company command post platforms and provided access to applications such as TIGR, FTP and combat chat. Harris is currently working with the U.S. Army to integrate the AN/PRC-117G and other radios into the second NIE, which starts this month, and third NIE, scheduled for March 2012.

In addition to AN/PRC-117G radios, Harris is providing AN/VRC-114 vehicular amplifier adapters, spare radio kits, training and installation to the Army in connection with its rollout of a broad network-centric battlefield communications system.

The field-proven AN/PRC-117G, deployed by all branches of the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), provides unprecedented situational awareness on the battlefield by delivering critical real-time information to warfighters on the move. Software-defined and upgradeable, the radio enables mobile ad-hoc networking, voice and high-bandwidth data applications. These capabilities support a growing number of network-enabled missions such as intelligence reporting and analysis, route planning, MEDEVAC and convoy tracking.

The AN/PRC-117G is the first wideband manpack radio system to receive both JTRS Software Communications Architecture and NSA Type-1 certification. With its fully integrated and NSA-certified High Assurance Internet Protocol Equipment (HAIPE) networking encryption, the AN/PRC-117G provides the highest level of information assurance available to tactical units.

Harris has shipped more than 16,000 AN/PRC-117G radios to the U.S. DoD and allies such as Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, other NATO nations and Australia. The radio was developed following the JTRS Enterprise Business Model (EBM). The EBM encourages companies to develop next-generation solutions in tactical communications using their own investment capital to integrate JTRS waveform software. In doing so, the EBM stimulates competition, increases innovation, and reduces cost through software re-use.

Harris RF Communications is the leading global supplier of secure radio communications and embedded high-grade encryption solutions for military, government and commercial organizations. The company's Falcon family of software-defined tactical radio systems encompasses manpack, handheld and vehicular applications. Falcon III is the next generation of radios supporting the U.S. military's Joint Tactical Radio System (JTRS) requirements, as well as network-centric operations worldwide. Harris RF Communications is also a leading supplier of assured communications systems and equipment for public safety, utility and transportation markets -- with products ranging from the most advanced IP voice and data networks to portable and mobile single- and multiband radios.