Northrop Grumman to Begin B-2 Satcom Development

The U.S. Air Force approved Northrop Grumman to begin formal development on a new satellite communication system for the B-2 stealth bomber. The system, Northrop Grumman said, will eventually allow the aircraft to send and receive battlefield information up to 100 times faster than current systems. Northrop Grumman is the prime contractor for the B-2. Northrop Grumman said it will upgrade the system from ultra high frequencies (UHF) to extremely high frequency (EHF) satellite communications program. The first increment of that program will replace the B-2's current flight management computers with a single, integrated processing unit developed by Lockheed Martin Systems Integration, Owego, N.Y. The next increment will give the aircraft the ability to send and receive information at EHF frequencies, while the final increment will fully integrate the new EHF communications capabilities into the aircraft's controls and displays.