Saab Defense and Security USA LLC said Jan. 27 the Army Program Executive Office for Simulation, Training and Instrumentation (PEO STRI) issued its Sensis unit a 12-month, $4.6 million firm-fixed-price task order for the company’s Wide Area Multilateration (WAM) system at Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM), Fort Lewis, Wash., to provide precise surveillance during low level tactical aviation maneuvers during training.
JBLM is currently under flight restrictions to mitigate flight safety hazards inherent in low-level flight, according to Army justification documents. The restrictions are necessary to avoid aircraft accidents similar to a December 2011 mid-air collision with four fatalities at JBLM.
“Climatic conditions combined with terrain and vegetative obstacles continue to pose significant safety hazards to Army aviators operating in there,” the documents said. Additionally, flight restrictions are affecting the quality and capacity of I Corps combined armed training.
“Units are being forced to train without the level of air support needed to fight and win on modern battlefields to which I Corps units are assigned. Lack of meaningful air support is continuing to degrade I Corps readiness,” the documents said.
The WAM system will fulfill a requirement from the Army Project Manager for Instrumentation, Targets and Threat imulators (PM ITTS), Instrumentation Management Office (IMO) to provide JBLM range support and Gray Army Airfield (GA.AF) Airspace Information Center (AIC) with real-time displays of cooperative aircraft position, altitude, discrete transponder code, speed, and bearing while aircraft are operating at low altitude in JBLM Tactical Terrain Flight Training Areas (TTFT A).
“This data is critical to mitigate unique low-visibility and terrain obstacles inherent at JBLM, particularly during flight operations in low-ceiling conditions experienced in autumn, winter, and spring at JBLM,” the documents said.
Lars Borgwing, president and CEO of Saab Defense and Security USA, LLC (SDAS), said, “Saab’s WAM is a field-proven surveillance solution for accurate situational awareness of a diverse mixture of aircraft and helicopters operating in challenging airspace.The system at JBLM will provide the military with a reliable method of acquiring airspace situational awareness that will benefit training safety and force readiness.”
JBLM will be the fourth U.S. military installation to utilize Saab WAM for surveillance of flights in Special Use Airspace, joining Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md., Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, Calif., and U.S. Army Yuma Proving Ground, Ariz.
Saab multilateration uses multiple low-maintenance, non-rotating sensors to triangulate aircraft location based on transponder signals, the company said in a statement. This provides operators with precise aircraft position and identification information regardless of weather conditions. With a higher update rate and greater positional accuracy than traditional radar, multilateration delivers effective surveillance for increased safety, capacity and efficiency of airspace and surface operations. By employing advanced processing techniques, a Saab multilateration system uses the minimal number of sensors for a less complex, lower lifecycle cost solution.