U.S. Army Merges General Dynamics' Land Warrior and Future Force Warrior ATD to Expedite... [DWXWHTT]
U.S. Army Merges General Dynamics' Land Warrior and Future Force Warrior ATD
to Expedite Fielding
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., Feb. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- The U.S. Army has merged its
dismounted soldier activities, consolidating its Land Warrior and Future Force
Warrior Advanced Technology Demonstration (ATD) programs. The consolidation
will enable the Army to spiral new technology into the hands of U.S. soldiers
sooner and create cost efficiencies.
Previously General Dynamics C4 Systems was responsible for the Army's Land
Warrior program and General Dynamics Land Systems was responsible for the
Future Force Warrior ATD. General Dynamics C4 Systems will manage the merged
effort for the U.S. Army.
"This consolidation gives the Army the efficiency of having a single prime
contractor managing the complementary and mutually supporting efforts to
develop new technologies and integrate soldier systems with combat platforms,"
said Carol Fitzgerald, the U.S. Army's Future Force Warrior Technology Program
Manager. "It will enhance the Army's ability to bring technologies to soldiers
quickly and more efficiently. We see this as a big 'win-win.'"
The change combines the development program and the ATD for more efficient
execution and accelerates the fielding of leading edge battle command
capabilities to individual soldiers and Army units of action. The consolidated
effort forms the baseline for the Army's Ground Soldier Systems, one of
several Army programs intended to develop, produce, test and field advanced
capabilities beginning in 2005 that can also keep pace with the Future Force
through 2014.
The restructured Land Warrior program will follow a spiral development
strategy to introduce new technology to current and future forces. The initial
increment equips soldiers with a dismounted battle command system that will
provide situational awareness and communication. The next increment provides a
Stryker-equipped battalion with the current Land Warrior ensemble featuring
expanded situational awareness and tactical-level messaging, integrated
lethality, Stryker vehicle-to-dismounted soldier communications, fratricide
avoidance and battery recharging. Follow-on increments will continue to
improve ground soldier capabilities.
The U.S. Army intends to allocate $59 million in the 2006 budget to equip
the Stryker experimental battalion, based on the successful completion of
nearly four months of Land Warrior field-testing at Ft. Benning, Ga., in 2004.
The testing included combat-proven soldiers of the Experimental Force
conducting a successful side-by-side comparison of the Land Warrior system
with equipment used in Iraq.
"The collaboration of General Dynamics C4 Systems with General Dynamics
Land Systems, maker of the Stryker eight-wheeled combat vehicle, has an
immediate benefit to soldiers," said Manny Mora, vice president of General
Dynamics C4 Systems. "Together we'll build on the baseline established at Ft.
Benning last year and continue to push the envelope on warrior-system
integration. This will rapidly drive technology to soldiers on the battlefield
while meeting the Army's desire to have an efficient program management
structure."
"The exercises at Ft. Benning were an unprecedented success in terms of
reliability of the ensemble, ease of use and functionality provided to the
infantrymen," said Col. Ernest T. Forrest, Training and Doctrine Command
System Manager-Soldier. "The Land Warrior program was able to showcase
features representing a bold step in the advance of soldier systems."
Beginning later this year, General Dynamics expects to deliver as many as
500 Land Warrior systems to a Stryker battalion to develop new tactics,
techniques and procedures, anticipating changes in the way soldiers can fight
with these dramatically advanced capabilities.
The Land Warrior is an integrated, modular fighting system that uses
technology to enhance individual soldiers' close-combat tactical awareness,
lethality and survivability. The current $170 million contract includes a
weapon-mounted system, an integrated helmet assembly, a communications-
navigation computer system and software for friendly-force tracking and
command/control programs. Future Force Warrior is a technology-development
effort intended to create new capabilities for deployment that enhance the
Ground Soldier suite of technologies and is interoperable with the Future
Combat Systems.
General Dynamics C4 Systems is a leading integrator of secure
communication and information systems and technology. With more than 9,000
employees worldwide, the company specializes in command and control,
communications networking, space systems, computing and information assurance
for defense, government and select commercial customers in the United States
and abroad.
General Dynamics, headquartered in Falls Church, Virginia, employs
approximately 70,200 people worldwide and had 2004 revenue of $19.2 billion.
The company is a market leader in mission-critical information systems and
technologies; land and expeditionary combat systems, armaments and munitions;
shipbuilding and marine systems; and business aviation. More information about
the company is available on the Internet at generaldynamics.com.
SOURCE General Dynamics C4 Systems
16Feb05 16:03 GMT
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