Northrop Grumman Highlights Whole Life Maintenance Support and Airborne Surveillance Capabilities at RAF Waddington International Air Show

LONDON, June 28, 2011 /PRNewswire/ --

Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) is one of the principal industry sponsors at the Waddington International Air Show in Lincoln, where it will highlight a range of its global security capabilities including whole life maintenance support, unmanned aircraft systems for airborne surveillance and defence electronics.

More than 130,000 visitors are expected at the two-day show being held at Royal Air Force (RAF) Waddington on Saturday 2nd July and Sunday 3rd July. The aim of the show is to raise public awareness and understanding of the RAF and its role today. All proceeds are donated to RAF and local charities.

The Northrop Grumman exhibit stand at the air show is located in Hangar 4.

"Northrop Grumman has been delivering the Whole Life Support Programme (WLSP) for the Sentry E-3D Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) fleet based at RAF Waddington since 2005 and we will continue to do so under our current contract until 2025," said Tom Vice, corporate vice president and president of Northrop Grumman Technical Services. "We are extremely proud of our long partnership with RAF Waddington, the Royal Air Force's home of airborne surveillance and reconnaissance, and of the contribution we make to front-line operations."

Northrop Grumman is the design organization for the E-3D Sentry fleet providing long-term UK-based technical support to the programme through the Joint Sentry Support Team consisting of nearly 200 personnel located at RAF Waddington. Working in partnership with the Sentry Integrated Project Team, the Northrop Grumman team provides the complete range of through-life services, including capability sustainment modernisation needed to support the Sentry E-3D AWACS aircraft through to its 2025 out-of-service date. Northrop Grumman also provides the radar and in-service support for the radar. Members of Northrop Grumman's Joint Sentry Support Team include BAE Systems and AAR.  

"The E-3D Sentry WLSP is one of Northrop Grumman's largest single programmes in the UK and Waddington plays a significant part in our UK business operations," said Sir Nigel Essenhigh, chairman Northrop Grumman UK. "We look forward to opportunities to build on the success of the strong partnering relationship that we have developed with the Sentry Project Team and to continue to deliver best value for money for this strategically important capability."    

In addition to the E-3D Sentry WLSP the Northrop Grumman exhibit will highlight its leading capabilities in unmanned aircraft including the Global Hawk high altitude, long-endurance unmanned aircraft system (UAS), the Broad Area Maritime Surveillance UAS and the Long Endurance Multi-Intelligence Vehicle (LEMV). Northrop Grumman is developing up to three LEMV systems for the U.S. Army. This system is designed to be optionally manned, providing the flexibility to operate with or without a crew onboard, and sustain altitudes of 20,000 feet for a three-week period to provide persistent intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capability. The company is also developing additional capabilities in the Lighter-Than-Air market to support heavy lift and other multi-mission sets.  

Northrop Grumman will also highlight its role in the F-35 programme. The company is a principal subcontractor on the Lockheed Martin-led F-35 industry team and is responsible for designing and producing the centre fuselage for all three variants of the F-35. The company also designed and produces the aircraft's radar and other key avionics including electro-optical and communications subsystems; develops mission systems and mission-planning software; leads the team's development of pilot and maintenance training system courseware; and manages the team's use, support and maintenance of low-observable technologies.

Northrop Grumman's infra-red countermeasures (IRCM) systems are installed or scheduled for installation on several hundred military aircraft to protect approximately 50 different types of large fixed-wing transports and rotary-wing platforms, including a variety of UK aircraft, from infrared missile attacks. The system functions by automatically detecting a missile launch, determining if it is a threat and activating a high-intensity laser-based countermeasure system to track and defeat the missile.  

The company has a well-established presence in the UK and operates from locations at London, Fareham, Chester, Coventry, Hendon, New Malden, Peterborough, RAF Waddington and Solihull, providing avionics, communications, electronic warfare systems, marine navigation systems, unmanned ground vehicles, C4ISR solutions and mission planning, cybersecurity, IT systems and software development.

Northrop Grumman is a leading global security company providing innovative systems, products and solutions in aerospace, electronics, information systems, and technical services to government and commercial customers worldwide. Please visit http://www.northropgrumman.com for more information.