The U.S. Air Force Test Center (AFTC) at Edwards AFB, Calif., said that it plans to award Alexandria, Va.-based Modern Technology Solutions, Inc. a contract to provide an Identification Friend or Foe (IFF) upgrade to meet the service’s chase aircraft support requirement for the Northrop Grumman [NOC] B-2 Spirit stealth bomber.
“The contract will be executed by means of other than full and open competition, as Modern Technology Solutions, Inc. is the incumbent for similar requirements and has all required capabilities for generic chase support for a B-2 flying from Whiteman AFB [Mo] to Edwards AFB without a FAA certified IFF system,” AFTC said in a Jan. 17 business notice. “The new IFF system must be certified by the FAA for utilization by the B-2 aircraft. This vendor is the sole provider capable of fulfilling these essential mission requirements.”
F-16 fighters have been chase planes for the B-2 and what is to be the Air Force’s new bomber, the Northrop Grumman B-21 Raider.
“It is recommended to obtain a solution to this requirement from Modern Technology Solutions, Inc.,” AFTC said on Jan. 17. “The mission partner’s requirements have determined the essential specifications and have been ensured that this source will be able to cover all possible application. It is essential to fulfill this requirement to ensure the successful escort of the B-2 (1087) back to Edwards AFB. As a result of this market research, it is in the best interest of the government to move forward with a sole source acquisition to Modern Technology Solutions, Inc. in order to fulfill the needs of this requirement and to allow for continuity as this vendor is the incumbent contract holder for similar chase support requirements.”
B-2 “1087” is the Spirit of Pennsylvania, the aircraft used at Edwards by AFTC’s 412th Test Wing for B-2 flight testing for the 20 aircraft fleet. Delivered to the Air Force in August 1997, the Spirit of Pennsylvania was the first B-2 Block 30, a series with added precision weapons and radar modes.
In 2017, the Spirit of Pennsylvania went through its third programmed depot maintenance (PDM) at Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale, Calif.–a PDM that restored the airframe and its low observable system and inspected the plane’s electrical and mechanical systems.
In fiscal 2024, the Air Force budgeted $10 million to go toward IFF Mode 5/S for 10 of the B-2s. The B-2 IFF Mode 5/S program entered engineering and manufacturing development in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2019.
“The DoD established Global Air Traffic Management renamed Communications, Navigation, Surveillance/Air Traffic Management (CNS/ATM) requirements in response to changes in global air traffic control procedures,” the Air Force said in its budget request. “IFF Mode 5/S is a required element of Communications, Navigation, Surveillance/Air Traffic Management (CNS/ATM). Mode 5 is the DoD/NATO mandated standard for secure combat identification and provides improved discrimination between closely spaced platforms, while reducing interference with civil air traffic control transponders enabling the B-2 fleet to accomplish its anti-access and global strike mission. Mode 5 replaced the obsolete Mode 4 combat identification. Mode S provides improved accuracy, altitude resolution and reduced interference from closely spaced aircraft through interrogation of assigned transponder addresses.”
Installation of IFF Mode 5/S on the 10 B-2s is to begin this fiscal year and last through fiscal 2026. The Air Force said that it would work to secure funding to install IFF Mode 5/S on the other 10 B-2s in future years.