- The systems combine maritime search radar, EO/IR cameras and encrypted AIS receivers
- Solicitation is estimated for Dec. 1, with award anticipated in the third quarter of fiscal 2027
- Contract type and vehicle remain undetermined
Customs and Border Protection has forecast a requirement worth more than $100 million for maritime surveillance systems deployed along U.S. coastlines.
The Air and Marine Operations component published the entry Wednesday on the Department of Homeland Security’s acquisition planning forecast system. A solicitation is estimated for Dec. 1, with award anticipated in the third quarter of fiscal 2027 and performance running through Jan. 16, 2032.
The scope covers rapid production and deployment, as well as moving fielded systems into steady-state operations and support. CBP has not settled on a contract type or vehicle, according to the forecast.
CBP counter-UAS lead Anthony Crane will join the Potomac Officers Club’s 2026 Homeland Security Summit on Nov. 10 in Tysons Corner, Virginia, where panels will cover border edge capabilities and counter-drone operations. Register now!
What Do the MAST Systems Include?
Each maritime approaches surveillance system, or MAST, uses commercial off-the-shelf sensors: maritime surface search radars, electro-optical and infrared cameras, and encrypted automatic identification system receivers, paired with a mission management system and payload platforms.
Data moves over a DHS-accredited network to authorized operations centers. The systems run continuously and carry communications, power and remote health-monitoring equipment.
CBP specifies that the systems withstand coastal and marine conditions and operate on commercial or solar power with generator backup. Deployment sites use elevated terrain and configurations, including towers, monopoles, tripods, raised platforms or buildings, to maximize overlapping radar and camera coverage.
How Does MAST Fit CBP’s Surveillance Portfolio?
CBP has operated maritime surveillance under its Border Surveillance Systems program, which covers fixed and mobile video, radar, ground sensors, and radio frequency sensors along U.S. borders.
CBP described earlier deployments as tests rather than permanent installations. A 2018 privacy impact assessment placed maritime systems off the California coast and at the eastern end of Lake Erie and the western end of Lake Ontario, using commercially available radar, cameras, and remote command and control to track watercraft, with wider fielding contingent on sensor performance.
The DHS Science and Technology Directorate previously developed a Coastal Surveillance System with a web-based architecture that pulled feeds from local and regional sensors into an unclassified fusion engine to produce vessel-tracking data. An initial version was installed at CBP’s Air and Marine Operations Center in December 2012.
