Northrop Grumman Showcases Defence and Homeland Security Capabilities at IDEX 2011

Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) will highlight a wide range of defence and security infrastructure system solutions, including airborne early warning and control systems, unmanned aerial vehicles, fire control radars and electronic warfare systems at the International Defence Exhibition & Conference (IDEX) in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE).

IDEX is the largest defence and security event in the Middle East and North African region and in 2011 celebrates its 10th anniversary. Held at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC), IDEX 2011 takes place from 20-24 Feb. Northrop Grumman’s exhibit in the U.S. pavilion will be at Stand 03-B12 and CS-1.

“Northrop Grumman’s strong relationship with the Gulf Cooperation Council [GCC] countries goes back many decades and is built on a legacy of trust and performance,” said Paul B. Kalafos, Jr., vice president surveillance systems, Northrop Grumman’s Electronic Systems sector. “Our objective is to continue to work closely with our customers to provide long-term capability solutions and help enhance defence and national security across the region.”

The exhibit will showcase Northrop Grumman’s world-leading capabilities in airborne early warning and control. Featured will be the E-2D Advanced Hawkeye and the Multi-role Electronically Scanned Array (MESA) radar.

The E-2D Advanced Hawkeye programme couples a newly designed electronically scanned radar with a matching suite of sensors, avionics, processors, software and displays to provide the most technologically advanced command and control capability available worldwide. The AN/APY-9 radar, with a two-generation leap in capability, is the backbone of this aircraft and provides greater flexibility and significantly improved detection and tracking over all terrains. The first E-2D to enter the U.S. Navy fleet was delivered in July 2010 and aircrew training is currently underway. The programme is on track for Initial Operational Test and Evaluation in 2013 and Initial Operational Capability in the fleet in 2015.

The MESA surveillance radar is an advanced airborne surveillance sensor and provides national protection enabling sophisticated air-to-air and maritime coverage and integrated friend-or-foe identification. It is the first of its type with potential capabilities that have yet to be exploited. MESA provides beam on demand electronic scan flexibility, revisits in any direction at any time, extends range and special features and adjusts coverage to match threats. A scale model of the array will be available for viewing.

The company’s industry-leading Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) programmes will be featured with a full-scale model of the corporation’s AN/APG-81 fire control radar. Also on display will be Northrop Grumman’s AN/APG-68(V)9 mechanically scanned array radar for the F-16 multi-role fighter aircraft.

The AN/APR-39 is specially designed to maximize survivability by improving aircrew situational awareness. The system provides continuous 360-degree coverage to automatically detect and identify threat types, bearing and lethality before alerting a cockpit crew to each threat with a graphical symbol on the cockpit multifunction display or video display. This cost-effective system features state-of-the-art technology in a small, lightweight configuration that protects a wide variety of fixed-, rotary- and tilt-wing aircraft from today’s most modern threats.

Northrop Grumman is an acknowledged leader in reliable, survivable and modular solid-state radar technology having produced more than 300 high performance solid-state radar systems and with over 900 ground-based radars currently in use worldwide. The AN/TPS-78 and the TPS-703 are the latest generation of state-of-the-art radars made possible by the technological advances in high power transistor design. A model of the AN/TPS-78 will be featured in the exhibit.

AN/TPQ-36 (v)10 Firefinder is a mobile ground-based radar that provides automatic, fast and accurate locations of artillery, mortars and rocket launchers. Handling simultaneous fire at multiple locations and detecting and reporting positions on the first round, Firefinder extends system performance, improves operator survivability and lowers life cycle cost.

Northrop Grumman’s National Threat Management System, Vigilant, is an advanced crisis and emergency management system. The state-of-the-art data-mining and intelligence tool brings situational awareness to a whole new level. The National Threat Management System is proven technology, offering the power, flexibility and total situational awareness to meet a country’s national security needs.

The company’s airborne surveillance capability will also be highlighted with models of the Long Endurance Multi-Intelligence Vehicle (LEMV) and MQ-8B Fire Scout vertical unmanned air system (VUAS).

Fire Scout is designed to accommodate a variety of sensor payloads to provide unprecedented situational awareness and precision targeting support. The U.S. Navy deployed a two-aircraft system on board the USS Halyburton (FFG-40) in January – Fire Scout’s second at-sea deployment. A three aircraft land-based system will also support U.S. Central Command in Afghanistan early this year. The first phase of testing was conducted on board Navy’s littoral combat ship USS Freedom (LCS-1) in November, a critical step in integrating Fire Scout on both variants of the LCS.

Northrop Grumman is developing up to three LEMV long endurance hybrid airship systems for the U.S. Army. This system is designed to be optionally manned, providing the flexibility to operate with or without a crew onboard, and sustain altitudes of 20,000 feet for a three-week period, to provide persistent intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capability. Final testing of the first LEMV is planned for the end of 2011.

Northrop Grumman’s UK capabilities in civil defence and security solutions will be highlighted in its exhibit in the UK pavilion at Stand 05-C11.

Featured will be the company’s tactical command and control systems, Integrated Tactical Command and Control Services (I-TaCCS) and Integrated Joint Operational Command and Control Services (I-JOCCS). The core software component of I-TaCCS is used around the world and is in service in more than 40 countries with 100,000 users. Presentations will be available on these capabilities. Also featured will be Northrop Grumman’s capability in unmanned ground vehicle systems for remote handling of hazardous threats including bomb disposal, tactical and surveillance operations. The highly versatile lightweight man-portable Caliber T5 vehicle will be on display.

The company’s German subsidiary, Northrop Grumman LITEF, will also be exhibiting at IDEX and will be displaying its navigation systems for land vehicles, sensors for weapon stabilisation, inertial guidance systems for missiles and AHRS / navigation systems for fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft. Northrop Grumman LITEF will be in the German pavilion at Stand 08-D02.

Northrop Grumman will be participating in two conferences in Abu Dhabi during the week before IDEX, 15-17 February: the Abu Dhabi International Offset Conference (ADIOC) at the Emirates Palace Hotel and; Electronic Warfare GCC 2011 being run in association with the UAE Armed Forces and hosted at the Armed Forces Officers Club & Hotel.