Raytheon receives $237M Army contract

Arlington-based Raytheon Technologies Corp. has received a $237 million Army contract to help the service detect and defeat unmanned aircraft with sensors and drones, the company announced Wednesday.

The contract includes a combination of fixed-site and mobile systems, including the company’s Ku-band Radio Frequency Sensor and Ku720 mobile sensing radar, as well as its Coyote drones, to support the Army’s operations in U.S Central Command. The sensors provide 360-degree threat detection and the Coyote is a warhead-equipped unmanned aircraft system that is launched by a tube and can be deployed from the ground, air or sea. The systems are part of the Army’s Low, slow, small-unmanned aircraft Integrated Defeat System, known as LIDS.

LIDS integrates the Ku radio frequency sensors and Coyote effectors with Falls Church-based Northrop Grumman Corp.’s Forward Area Air Defense Command and Control system and Syracuse Research Corp.’s electronic warfare system.

“The KuRFS radar and Coyote effectors effectively detect and defeat unmanned aircraft systems, an increasingly evident and global threat,” Tom Laliberty, president of land warfare and air defense at Raytheon Missiles & Defense, said in a statement. “LIDS is operationally deployed, providing a proven, reliable and essential layer of defense against enemy drones.”

CENTCOM is one of the 11 united combatant commands under the Department of Defense and includes Egypt and the Middle East.

Raytheon said in an email that the contract was received April 13, and the contracting agency is the Defense Microelectronics Activity.