In the
next phase of integrating the Aegis Combat System on the U.S. Navy’s
fleet, Lockheed Martin has won a ten-year contract that will, with options,
have the potential to be worth about $428 million. The Ship Integration
& Test (SI&T) program will integrate Aegis onboard new Arleigh
Burke-class destroyers, and modernize destroyers and cruisers to operate
the latest iteration of the Aegis configuration, called Baseline 9.
Through Baseline 9, ships can simultaneously defend against airborne
threats, such as aircraft or cruise missiles, while also targeting and
intercepting ballistic missiles. It is the only naval combat system
in the world to demonstrate the ability to conduct integrated air and
missile defense simultaneously.
“When a ship goes into harm’s way, the combat system must
work 100 percent of the time – there is no margin of error,”
said Chris Minster, SI&T senior program manager of Lockheed Martin
Mission Systems and Training. “Whether it is designing a system
for a brand new ship or working hand-in-hand with sailors pierside,
Ship Integration and Test is there to deliver.”
Lockheed Martin’s SI&T team delivers both planned upgrades
and engineered innovations to make ships more capable and survivable.
In tandem with SI&T, Lockheed Martin also provides engineering services
including design, development, integration, test and life cycle support
for all Aegis-equipped ships through the Combat System Engineering Agent
(CSEA) contract, which was re-awarded to Lockheed Martin in 2013. |
