Raytheon To Supply Field Artillery Tactical Data System To U.S Army

Raytheon Company has won an $81 million contract from the U.S. Army to develop and produce a new version of the Advanced Field Artillery Tactical Data System (AFATDS). Under the contract, Raytheon will provide general and fires command and control capabilities to ground forces, from mission planning to execution. AFATDS is designed to integrate and use information from a variety of sources to create a common operational picture. The system utilizes the information and common operational picture to plan, coordinate and control battlefield elements, including mortars, close air support, naval gunfire, attack helicopters, offensive electronic warfare, field artillery cannons, rockets and guided missiles. "Our system brings the network to the battlefield and to front-line personnel, providing them with complete and accurate information about their environment," said Kim Kerry, vice president of C4I Systems for Raytheon's Network Centric Systems business. "Soldiers in the line of fire will be able to select the right weapons for the right targets at the right time". Version 6.8X of the system will focus on improving and simplifying the user interface while enhancing speed and capabilities.