Teledyne Awarded FCS Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Contract.LOS ANGELES -- Teledyne Technologies Incorporated (NYSE NYSE See: New York Stock Exchange :TDY TDY abbr. temporary duty ) today announced that Teledyne Brown Engineering Teledyne Brown Engineering, or TBE, formerly Brown Engineering, is a Huntsville, AL–based subsidiary of Teledyne Technologies (NYSE: TDY). TBE was acquired by Teledyne Technologies in 1966. , Inc., was one of three companies awarded a multi-million dollar contract by The Boeing Company (NYSE:BA), the Lead Systems Integrator (LSI LSI: see integrated circuit. (Large Scale Integration) Between 3,000 and 100,000 transistors on a chip. See SSI, MSI, VLSI and ULSI. ) for the U.S. Army's Future Combat Systems (FCS FCS - Frame Check Sequence ) program, for phase one of the Class III Unmanned Aerial Vehicle A powered, aerial vehicle that does not carry a human operator, uses aerodynamic forces to provide vehicle lift, can fly autonomously or be piloted remotely, can be expendable or recoverable, and can carry a lethal or nonlethal payload. (UAV) development and demonstration under the FCS program. The value of Teledyne's phase one contract is $3.7 million. Teledyne Brown's UAV, "Prospector", will be evaluated on Class III critical performance requirements. Prospector is a proven, reliable and flexible UAV system that currently meets most of the Class III requirements. Prospector is a rapidly deployable system that provides advanced tactical reconnaissance and surveillance. The FCS Class III UAV effort is a multi-phase award. Phase one, expected to last 10 months, includes requirements assessment and risk reduction trade studies on initial UAV concepts. Companies will compete for the second phase award, which will consist of prototype production and flight demonstration and is scheduled for a mid-2006 award. A single company will be selected to compete against the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency's (DARPA DARPA: see Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) The name given to the U.S. Advanced Research Projects Agency during the 1980s. It was later renamed back to ARPA. ) vehicle for the third phase award, production. "It was a strategic decision for Teledyne to reenter the UAV market at this time," said Robert Mehrabian, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Teledyne Technologies. "Prospector provides a solution that not only meets the specifications of the U.S. Army, but also fits the needs of other branches of the military, those of international governments and other non-defense groups as well. We are proud to have been selected as one of Boeing's FCS partners." The baseline vehicle was originally developed by Rheinmetall Defence Electronics for the German Army and is now fielded by NATO NATO: see North Atlantic Treaty Organization. NATO in full North Atlantic Treaty Organization International military alliance created to defend western Europe against a possible Soviet invasion. troops. In October of 2004, Teledyne Brown and Rheinmetall Defence Electronics entered into an alliance to market Prospector and other UAVs to the U.S. government. Prospector, which will be built in Teledyne Brown's manufacturing facilities in Huntsville, has a highly automated mission planning system, a rapid launch capability and a parachute and air bag landing system. Prospector also features high-precision navigation using GPS and onboard inertial navigation, a high jam-resistant digital data link, high level of autonomous operation and computer-aided sensor control that enables target tracking and image manipulation. The system is C-130 transportable, can be launched and recovered without an airfield and can be integrated with existing and projected command and control components. Teledyne Technologies is a leading provider of sophisticated electronic components, instruments and communication products, systems engineering solutions, aerospace engines and components and on-site gas and power generation systems. Teledyne Technologies has operations in the United States, the United Kingdom, Mexico and Canada. For more information, visit Teledyne Technologies' website at www.teledyne.com. Approved for Public Release, Distribution Unlimited, TACOM TACOM Tank-Automotive and Armaments Command (US Army) TACOM Tactical Communications TACOM Tactical Command TACOM Tank-Automotive and Armament Command TACOM Theater Army Command TACOM Tactical Army Command TACOM Tactical Army COM 22 Aug 2005, case 05-174 |
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