ThalesRaytheonSystems has been awarded a $21.8 M contract by the US Army to upgrade multiple AN/MPQ-64 Sentinel air defense radar systems. This award is an option to the existing upgrade contract originally awarded in June 2007. The contract will upgrade the US Army Sentinel radar transmitters, receivers and exciters, and increase functional capabilities such as faster data processing and greater detection range for smaller targets. Additional capabilities will also help minimize instances of fratricide and accidental counter-missile firing and facilitate a transition to defense-force mobility.
"The latest system enhancements will benefit the warfighter by providing earlier threat detection," said Kim Kerry, Chief Executive Officer, ThalesRaytheonSystems, US Operations. "It will also prepare the Sentinel for future missions such as special events protection, air traffic control and general homeland defense." Upgrade work will be performed in El Paso, TX, and Fullerton, CA.
The Sentinel radar is the premier air surveillance and target acquisition and tracking sensor for the US Army's Cruise Missile Defense Systems program. The radar's primary mission is to protect maneuver forces and critical assets from cruise missile, unmanned aerial vehicles, and rotary- and fixed-wing threats. The Sentinel accurately acquires targets far enough forward of friendly troops to provide sufficient reaction time for air defense weapons to engage at optimum ranges. More than 200 Sentinel radars are currently deployed by military forces worldwide.