BAE Systems has received a $36.7M contract from the U.S. Navy to build and test a radio-frequency countermeasures system intended to protect aircraft against missile threats.
Work covers development and demonstration of the Fiber-Optic Towed Decoy that will work to disrupt enemy radars, lure missiles away from aircraft and operate with electronic warfare technology, BAE said Monday.
FOTD is based on the company’s AN/ALE-55 platform and offers a self-protection capability for bomber, fighter and transport planes.
Tom McCarthy, director of the dual band decoy program at BAE, said the company designed its towed decoy to help airmen perform missions in highly contested airspace.
The company-built system has supported F/A-18E/F operations as well as flight tests of multiple aircraft platforms.
Engineering work on FOTD will take place at a BAE facility in Nashua, N.H. To date, the company has produced 3K ALE-55 decoys.
