Return to BTJ Online

Weapons of War
Space Coast companies provide military technology geared toward assisting U.S. troops in Operation: Iraqi Freedom

By Anne Straub
Brevard Technical Journal

Local troops aren’t Brevard County’s only participation in Iraqi Freedom. Space Coast defense contractors are playing a part, as well.

A Northrop Grumman spokesman would say only that the company’s Joint STARS surveillance plane has been deployed. The system uses a modified Boeing 707 manned by a joint Army-Air Force crew to track movement on the ground, outside the range of enemy air defense.

J-STARS electronics are installed and tested in Melbourne.

During the Persian Gulf War, coalition forces used two J-STARS aircraft that were still in development. Those systems were unable to transmit data directly to the battle commander, who instead had to wait for the aircraft to land before downloading data, said Northrop Grumman spokesman Jim Stratford.

Now, J-STARS planes in operation – the Air Force received the first production aircraft in 1996 – can send information immediately, via satellite communications that were not in place during the last Persian Gulf conflict.

That satellite system includes work done by local defense contractor Harris Corp., the leading supplier of SATCOM ground terminals to the U.S. government. The systems are built to be airlifted anywhere in the world, quickly assembled and survive harsh environments.

The latest versions of J-STARS also have higher processing power and more storage space, thanks to the more powerful servers onboard. The result is a wealth of information available to military planners. They can take high-resolution satellite data and overlay it with images the radar is receiving, creating a detailed, up-to-the-moment picture. J-STARS also can send information directly to Apache Longbow attack helicopters.

“We’re processing information real time and sending target information to military aircraft that can carry out a response to that threat,” Stratford said.

Over time, J-STARS information can be used to determine where troops are building up and where equipment is being stored. Military strategists can get an idea of the enemy’s plans by watching when the equipment leaves and where it goes.

“It can’t move without being seen,” Stratford said.

Another technology produced locally is the Improved Data Modem, made by Symetrics Inc. in Melbourne. The technology is installed in aircraft and uses voice radios as a conduit for sharing information, linking several pilots and the ground. It transmits in a digital format to get target information to the pilot faster.

“It’s certainly on some aircraft there,” said Jim Peterson, Symetrics director of business development.

The company also markets the IDM with the addition of photo imagery, in the PRISM-IDM. That advancement gives the pilot a picture of a target so the pilot can make sure it’s valid, the goal being to reduce friendly-fire accidents. Great Britain has installed PRISM-IDM on 52 Jaguar combat aircraft. It’s possible the technology is being used in Iraq, Peterson said, though aircraft with the technology might not be assigned to the Middle East.

Symetrics also makes telemetry sets for the U.S. Navy Patriot missile, as well as electronic circuit cards for the Forward Looking Infrared system used on aircraft to identify targets at long range.

It serves as a subcontractor to Melbourne firm Data Voice Inc., which holds a contract with the Navy to make the Memory Loader Verifier. The MLV quickly loads avionics and electronic warfare information into aircraft, giving the pilot the most recent data available.

Other local firms involved in military technology include DRS Optronics in Palm Bay, which makes fire control systems for the Improved Bradley Acquisition Subsystem, to be installed on Bradley fighting vehicles. The technology lets gunners identify and engage targets at much longer ranges.

Harris Corp. is not able to comment on whether its systems are being used in the war, a spokesman said. Among its areas of expertise are avionics and optical communications systems for aircraft, networks and information systems, high-performance antennas and RF electronics as well as highly accurate imagery and visualization.