Lockheed’s helicopter-based missile surveillance, deterrent system passes preliminary design review

Lockheed Martin’s Advanced Off-Board Electronic Warfare (AOEW) system, developed to provide MH-60 helicopters with enhanced electronic warfare surveillance and countermeasure capabilities against anti-ship missile threats, recently passed its preliminary design review on schedule.

AOEW was designed to work independently and with a ship’s onboard electronic surveillance sensor, called the SEWIP Block 2 AN/SLQ-32(V)6, to detect incoming missile fire and then assess its trajectory. It then utilizes radio frequency countermeasures to deter the missile away from its intended target.

Originally awarded in December 2016 by the U.S. Navy, the $42 million contract covered the system design and development phases. According to Lockheed Martin, the company expects to be awarded the engineering and manufacturing development (EMD) phase later in the year with options for six units.

“The battlefield at sea is constantly changing,” Joe Ottaviano, program director for Lockheed’s Electronic Warfare Program, said. “Our Advanced Off-Board Electronic Warfare capabilities will give the U.S. Navy a powerful tool to detect threats and respond to our adversaries.”

Constructed is slated to begin in early 2018 at Lockheed’s manufacturing facility in Syracuse, New York. Lockheed’s Oswego, New York team will then integrate the system onto the helicopters built by a company subsidiary called Sikorsky.