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Satnews Daily
March 30th, 2020

Protected Tactical Waveform Contracts Assigned by SMC


The Space and Missile Systems Center has awarded Raytheon Company – Space and Airborne Systems and L3 Technologies Inc. two, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, multi-award contracts with ceiling values of $500 million each, totaling $1 billion, for development and production of Protected Tactical Waveform (PTW)-capable modems, more than 120 days ahead of schedule, March 27.

SMC teamed with the Army Program Executive Office Command Control Communications – Tactical, Product Manager Satellite Communications to leverage commonality and gain efficiencies to execute the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Army Anti-Jam Modem (A3M) program.

A3M directly supports Protected Tactical SATCOM (PTS) and is a critical capability to increase anti-jam and communications capacity for joint tactical warfighters in contested environments.

A3M will benefit all DoD SATCOM and national security efforts and ultimately keep the nation and its allies operating safely from anywhere at any time.

Despite the difficulties presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, to include social distancing, the A3M program team continued to execute their mission successfully to completion. On March 18, SMC’s commander mandated telework to help protect Airmen and their families from the evolving risk presented by novel coronavirus.

The continuation of SMC’s mission is vital to national security and the joint warfighter. Amidst the coronavirus pandemic, the A3M team has proven that SMC and the U.S. Space Force are capable and ready anytime, anywhere and under any circumstances.

Col. Dennis Bythewood, SMC’s Program Executive Officer for Space Development, added that during times like these, the mission must be executed while ensuring that SMC's people are being protected. Not only did the A3M team complete this source selection and contract award via telework, they beat their plan by over 120 days, continuing SMC’s commitment to EPIC Speed.

Shannon Pallone, Senior Materiel Leader, Tactical SATCOM Division, said the company is very excited to be partnering with Raytheon and L3 Technologies Inc. to bring Protected Tactical Waveform anti-jam capability to both Department of the Air Force and Army users. This was a joint team from the start, a partnership between the Space Force and the Army, and included support from the [National Security Agency]. The team’s disciplined and distributed approach enabled a significantly early award and allowed for a smooth transition to teleworking in the final weeks.