Business Editors
PARSIPPANY, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 22, 2002
DRS Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: DRS) announced today that it has received a contract to produce ground support equipment that will optimize the analysis of flight audio and video data for the United Kingdom's Royal
The contract, valued at approximately $2.5 million, was received by DRS from the United Kingdom's Ministry of Defence. For this award, DRS will provide Deployable Ground Replay Facilities (DGRF) to analyze the missions of the Tornado GR4 aircraft. Work for this order will be accomplished by the company's DRS Hadland unit located in Tring, Hertfordshire, in the United Kingdom.
Recognized for ruggedness, portability and compact size, this system has been designed for worldwide operations with a minimal amount of operator training required. For this application, the DGRF will replay cockpit audio and video data from up to six multiplexed input sources via standard video cassettes to provide ground support for this aircraft.
"This award expands our business base with the Royal Air Force and enhances our position on the Tri-National Tornado contract as the incumbent supplier for the combined cockpit voice recorder and data entry device," said Mark S. Newman, DRS Technologies' chairman, president and chief executive officer. "With more than 40 years of experience in the design and manufacture of systems used for high-speed image capture and data analysis, DRS is well-qualified to deliver a superior system for this program."
The DGRF is built using replaceable modules that maximize the use of Commercial Off-The-Shelf (COTS) components. De-multiplexed data from the DGRF are displayed using a Graphical User Interface (GUI) in a multiple window environment. All displays can be fed to separate flat panels for mission debriefing sessions.
Built by Panavia Aircraft GmbH, a German-Italian-U.K. conglomerate, the Tornado GR4 is an all-weather, multi-mission combat aircraft. Capable of long-range interdiction, defense suppression and tactical reconnaissance, the GR4 is the U.K.'s most up-to-date version of the Tornado, which became fully operational in April 2001. The aircraft features significantly improved capabilities, including Forward Looking Infrared (FLIR) night vision equipment, updated avionics and modern flight controls. These and other upgrades have resulted in increased information sharing with intelligence gathering aircraft, providing air crew with a high level of situational awareness.
DRS Technologies provides leading edge products and services to government and commercial customers worldwide. Focused on defense electronics, the company develops and manufactures a broad range of mission critical systems and components in the areas of communications, combat systems, rugged computers, electro-optics, data storage, digital imaging, flight safety and space.
For more information about DRS Technologies, please visit the company's web site at www.drs.com