Raytheon Co., Tucson, Arizona, is awarded a $32,853,210 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for the Autonomous Swarm/Strike – Loitering Munitions. This contract provides for work on the Coyote Block 3 (CB3) Autonomous Strike—a rapid capability effort to achieve operational launch capability from unmanned surface vessels (USVs) and an unmanned underwater vessel (UUV). The intended concept of operations (CONOP) and tactics, techniques and procedures (TTPs) are to provide intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) and precision strike capability from maritime platforms. Additionally, the High Volume Long Range Precision Strike (HVLRPS) from USVs and Fires (HVLRPF) from UUVs demonstrations will leverage prior efforts including the Innovative Naval Prototype (INP) and progress on the Mobile Precision Attack Vehicle (MoPAV).
Work will be performed in Tucson, Arizona with an expected completion date of Feb. 26, 2024. The total cumulative value of this contract, including a one-year base period and twelve option periods, is $32,853,210. Fiscal 2021 research, development, test and evaluation U.S. Navy funds in the amount of $9,500,000 are obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured under N00014-20-S-B001, “Long Range Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) for Navy and Marine Corps Science & Technology.” Since proposals are received throughout the year under the Long Range BAA, the number of proposals received in response to the solicitation is unknown. The Office of Naval Research, Arlington, Virginia, is the contracting activity.
The Raytheon Coyote is a small, expendable, unmanned aircraft system built by the Raytheon Company, with the capability of operating in autonomous swarms. It is launched from a sonobuoy canister with the wings deploying in early flight phase. The system can operate up to one hour and is designed for interchangeable payloads. A company named Advanced Ceramic Research, of Tucson, Arizona, originally developed the Coyote, Manta and Silver Fox UAS under small business contracts from the U.S. Office of Naval Research. British defense contractor BAE Systems acquired the company in 2009, then sold it back to one of the former owners under the name Sensintel. Raytheon acquired Sensintel in 2015 and folded the company into its Tucson-based Missile Systems business.
The most capable in its class, the Coyote® unmanned aircraft system is small, expendable and tube-launched. It can be deployed from the ground, air or a ship. The Coyote UAS can handle reasonably large accelerations during launch, a critical feature for all tube-launch applications. It’s ideal for improved surveillance imagery, enhanced targeting capability, near real-time damage assessment and reduced threat to manned aircraft. The Coyote UAS can be flown individually or netted together in swarms, and it is adaptable for a variety of missions including surveillance, electronic warfare and strike. The system will operate up to one hour and is designed for interchangeable payloads. Raytheon Missiles & Defense is finalizing development of advanced Coyote variants that will fly faster and farther.
