DRS Technologies Receives U.S. Air Force Award to Develop New Leading Edge Infrared Technology for Strategic Space Applications.

Business Editors

PARSIPPANY, N.J.,--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 5, 2000

High-Temperature Focal Plane Arrays To Extend Life of Surveillance

Satellites

DRS Technologies, Inc. (ASE: DRS) announced today that it has received a contract from the U.S. Air Force to develop new infrared focal plane arrays (FPAs) for the High Operating Temperature Staring Arrays (HOTSTAR) program in support of future advanced space surveillance applications.

The award represents the first time DRS's advanced focal plane array technology will be used for space-based applications.

The $1.3 million contract was awarded to DRS by the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory, Space Vehicles Directorate, at Kirtland Air Force Base in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Work for this contract will be accomplished by the company's DRS Infrared Technologies unit in Dallas, Texas. HOTSTAR will be designed to implement improvements to Mercury Cadmium Telluride infrared detector technology, so that infrared sensors can operate at temperatures significantly above those currently possible. This technology, once developed, will provide staring FPAs that will extend the life expectancy of sensor payloads in various satellite surveillance systems, as well as reduce the systems' weight, power and cost. The contract has a duration of 27 months.

"The focal plane array technology developed for remote sensors under this program will be critical to the Air Force's objective to instantly detect and assess any threat from anywhere in the world," said DRS's chairman, president and chief executive officer Mark S. Newman. "By adding a year or more to the operational life of a satellite, our technology will protect valuable national assets and enhance the global presence of the United States in any military theater, which will have significant long-range strategic implications for peace keeping in the 21st century."

Under separate awards, DRS provides advanced focal plane arrays for several significant U.S. military programs and is a market leader in long-range, advanced infrared sighting and weapons systems technology for day and night target detection under harsh environmental conditions.

The company's focal plane array technology is already slated for use in theater missile defense applications, where its multi-band sensor capabilities will provide increased discrimination between threat projectiles, decoys and background debris. DRS's three-band sensor technology, currently under development for the U.S. Navy, will represent the state-of-the-art in infrared detection and will be one of the most sophisticated detector capabilities in the world. It is anticipated that this and other DRS-developed multi-color infrared FPA technologies will be utilized for key future military applications where threat warning, clutter rejection and false alarm reduction are imperative.

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 products, from rugged computers and peripherals to systems and components in the areas of communications, data storage, digital imaging, electro-optics, flight safety and space.

Additional information is available on the company's web site at www.drs.com.