CAES, a leading provider of mission-critical advanced RF technology, announced today it has been awarded a contract valued at more than $24 million from Northrop Grumman to provide M-Code GPS antennas to support Precision Guidance Kits (PGK). The company has provided guidance antennas to the U.S. military for decades. M-Code GPS antennas help improve security and anti-jamming of military navigation. Implementing this technology will make PGK one of the largest programs within the U.S. DOD integrating this critical capability. With extensive antenna and electronic warfare design expertise, CAES manufactures a wide variety of innovative antennas and antenna subsystems.
“PGK’s precision provides a critical capability to artillery units, enabling forces to rapidly achieve mission success while also reducing the number of rounds required to defeat targets,” said Dave Fine, vice president for armament systems, Northrop Grumman.
“Our advanced capabilities in antenna design and manufacturing are a natural fit in supporting these advanced munitions,” said Mike Kahn, president and CEO, CAES. “We’re proud to support Northrop Grumman on the PGK program to bring accurate, reliable and affordable precision fires to the Army.”
Precision Guidance Kits (PGK) transforms conventional artillery projectiles into GPS-guided precision weapons used to engage critical targets while limiting collateral damage risk. The contract calls for CAES to deliver 80,000 antennas over the next three years to support Northrop Grumman’s PGK production for the U.S. Army. Recently,
Northrop Grumman Corporation incorporated user feedback to add a built-in, selectable, safety feature that prevents detonation if the PGK predicts the projectile will exceed the selected miss distance while in flight. The company is also nearing completion of the necessary qualification events to implement GPS M-Code, which will allow PGK to defend against existing and emerging threats to GPS, such as jamming.
Once implemented, PGK will be one of the largest production programs within the U.S. Department of Defense to integrate this crucial capability that allows authorized users to acquire two signals from GPS satellites to achieve superior positioning accuracy. These investments include creating PGK compatibility for the Army’s latest developments in extended range cannon artillery systems and projectiles as well as the ability to operate in GPS-degraded conditions. For nearly a decade, the U.S. Army has successfully used the Precision Guidance Kit (PGK) to upgrade conventional 155mm artillery to a level of accuracy that approaches near precision.
