Lockheed locks up $1.5B deal

A team led by Lockheed Martin Corp. has won a highly coveted $1.5 billion

Air Force contract to modernize and integrate 40 air, missile and space

command and control systems.

The 40 North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) and U.S. Air Force

Space Command systems use various operating systems and languages. Integrating

them into a single enterprise system is expected to offer Air Force commanders

a common, global picture of the battlefield using shared, nearly instantaneous

data.

The 15-year program is known as the Integrated Space Command and Control

(ISC2) program.

The modernization effort is expected to improve the ability of data to be

shared among air, missile and space defense systems and other command and

control systems. That in turn should provide commanders with a faster response

to enemy actions and should improve strategic and tactical coordination

among forces, according to Thad Madden, a Lockheed Martin spokesman.

"It points to the growing importance of information superiority and information

dominance and will greatly enhance data sharing for the commanders overall.

I see it as enabling commanders to think ahead of the enemy," Madden said.

Lockheed competed for the program against TRW Inc., and Madden said the

company relied heavily on previous experience with command and control systems,

especially at Cheyenne Mountain, Colo., where NORAD has its headquarters.

Lockheed and some of its 32 team members have prior experience at Cheyenne,

Madden said.