The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, MD, has awarded four contracts for the Persistent Unmanned Maritime Airborne Surveillance (PUMAS) Capability Broad Agency Announcement (BAA). The PUMAS BAA is intended to aid development of system level alternatives that can provide optimal unmanned persistent maritime ISR capabilities, while leveraging existing and projected capabilities.

Contracts have been awarded to The Boeing Company, Seattle, WA; General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems, Dayton, OH; Lockheed-Martin Corporation, Saint Paul, MN; and Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation, Bethpage, NY. During the initial five-month period of performance, the selected companies will establish performance metrics for the unmanned intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance (ISR) mission, and examine capabilities necessary for optimal performance of the ISR mission within a family of systems. The contracted efforts will ultimately help the U.S. Navy apply its manned and unmanned family of systems architecture, within a network-centric environment.

In an effort to recapitalize its manned land-based maritime ISR capabilities, the U.S. Navy believes that UAVs will provide substantial additional warfighting capability. “Integration of manned and unmanned systems into an overarching maritime architecture will create an environment for increasing both the capability and the efficiency of the Navy’s ISR assets,” explained Capt. Paul Morgan, manager of the Navy’s UAV program office. He continued “by creating a capability-based systems definition and robust systems architecture for a family of systems approach to unmanned maritime ISR, the Navy will have set a firm foundation on which to plan its future systems.”

The contracts also contain priced options for an additional seven months of activity to develop technical baselines and conduct risk assessment.