The Marine Corps is soliciting industry’s input on its search to find counter-drone systems for its MADIS Inc. 1 mobile ground-based air defense program, with plans to hold a competition for an eventual multiple-award contract.
A pre-solicitation notice and draft Request for Proposals published on June 1 details the Marine Corps’ interest in an “advanced, highly autonomous effector” capable of taking out Group 1 to 3 UAS threats “at significant ranges from the launch location.”
MADIS Inc. 1 is the Marine Corps’ modernization effort to field a ground-based air defense capability integrated on heavy gun carrier variant Joint Light Tactical Vehicles (JLTV).
“This system will provide a new and improved capability to mitigate the risk of attacks from Unmanned Aircraft Systems and Fixed Wing/Rotary Wing aircraft while maintaining pace with maneuver forces. Specifically, [MADIS Inc. 1] provides Marine Air-Ground Task Force commanders short range ability to detect, track, identify, and defeat aerial threats,” the Marine Corps wrote in the new notice.
The Marine Corps said it plans to hold a full and open competition for the multi-award deal for MADIS Inc 1. Counter-drone systems, which will include a total of five one-year ordering periods.
The future drone defeat system, which is called a Counter Engagement System in the pre-solicitation notice, would be used on both the Mk1 and Mk2 variants for MADIS.
The Mk1 includes turret-launched Stinger missiles, a multi-functional electronic warfare capability and a direct-fire on a remote weapons station, while the Mk2 swaps the Stingers for a 360-degree radar and command and control suite.
The draft RFP states the counter-drone system could be integrated onto Remote Weapon Station utilized on the JLTV for MADIS, mounted onto a JLTV trailer, or a combination of both.
Norway’s Kongsberg was awarded a $94 million deal in September 2021 to provide its RS6 Remote Weapon Station for MADIS (Defense Daily, Oct. 5 2021).