ViaSat Inc. received a contract to develop the satellite ground equipment for a planned satellite network upgrade for the U.S. Army’s Force XXI Battle Command Brigade and Below – Blue Force Tracking system, ViaSat announced April 11.
Under a $9.3 million contract from Northrop Grumman Corp., ViaSat and Harris Corp.’s RF Communications Division will build a prototype network and terminals designed to increase network capacity and improve accuracy. Northrop Grumman is the system integrator for the program, which provides battle command and situational awareness information using GPS navigation signals and communication satellites.
Work under the contract is scheduled to be complete in a year, and production and delivery of replacement terminals may begin as early as 2008, ViaSat said.