Northrop Grumman to upgrade 16 Joint STARS fleet central computers
NewsOctober 04, 2018
MELBOURNE, Fla. Officials at the U.S. Air Force selected Northrop Grumman to upgrade the central computers on 16 aircraft in the E-8C Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System (Joint STARS) fleet. The contract is worth $17.5 million.
This effort serves as a low-risk pathfinder for the U.S. Air Force to continue to enhance fleet capability while it develops the follow-on Advanced Battle Management System. Joint STARS offers battlefield commanders real-time situational information while simultaneously transmitting target locations to aircraft and ground strike forces.
The first computer replacement program was completed 2001. At that time, Northrop Grumman engineers incorporated commercially available off-the-shelf technology into the weapon system. This effort reduced weight to save fuel cost and added more mission processing capability.
