Northrop Grumman has completed preliminary design review (PDR), as well as software requirements and architecture review of the US Air Force’s (USAF) enhanced polar system control and planning segment (EPS CAPS) system.
Carried out jointly with the Military Satellite Communications (MILSATCOM) Systems Directorate, the reviews focused on ensuring that all CAPS requirements were successfully allocated.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Discover B2B Marketing That Performs
Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.
Additional achievements included analysis of plans for the software architecture development, including segment and element designs, specialty engineering review, plans for verification and validation, and programme risk updates.
Northrop Grumman Intelligence Systems division vice-president and general manager Dave Ryan said the completion of reviews marked the accomplishment of an important risk-reduction achievement.
"This sets the stage for the critical design review next spring and illustrates our ability to quickly deliver innovative national space security products to the air force," Ryan said.
EPS CAPS programme aims to offer extremely high-frequency (EHF) protected satellite communications (SATCOM) capabilities to forces operating in the North Polar Region in support of the Department of Defense’s (DoD) joint-communication capability requirements.
US Tariffs are shifting - will you react or anticipate?
Don’t let policy changes catch you off guard. Stay proactive with real-time data and expert analysis.
By GlobalDataThe EPS system will provide soldiers with secure teletype, voice, email, instant messaging, video, multimedia and data communications capabilities, in addition to facilitating jam-resistant, strategic and tactical communications between forces operating above 65° north latitude.
Primarily designed to deliver telemetry and control, mission planning and crypto planning for the EPS payload, CAPS also enables implementation of payload clock management and over-the-air-rekey of user terminals missions.
Northrop secured a cost-plus-incentive-fee contract for design and development of the EPS CAPS system in November 2012.
Primary work under the contract is scheduled to be carried out at the company’s facility in Redondo Beach, California, while additional CAPS activity will be conducted in Florida, and Needham and Marlborough in Massachusetts, US.
