Weapons

BAE scores $318M Army GPS contract

The award relates to the M-code GPS cards for the Mounted and Dismounted Assured Position, Navigation and Timing systems.

By Mark Pomerleau

September 29, 2023

Sgt. 1st Class Jeffrey Englehardt, the noncommissioned officer-in-charge of the operations section for the 142nd Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, which is deployed to support 1st Theater Sustainment Command, gauges wind speed near the Camp Buehring, Kuwait, drop zone for the April 22, 2021 air drop of four bundles using the Joint Precision Air Delivery System, JPADS. Englehardt said JPADS uses the Modular Autonomous Guidance Unit, or MAGU, to manipulate the the parafoil's rigging to steer it using GPS to reach its programmed coordinates. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Neil W. McCabe)

The Army awarded BAE Systems a five-year, $318 million sole-source contract to provide military-code GPS cards for the Mounted and Dismounted Assured Position, Navigation and Timing systems.

These programs seek to provide resilient navigation and positioning data to platforms and dismounted capabilities if GPS is denied or jammed by the enemy.

The award also signifies a critical milestone for the Army toward modernized M-code procurement, which has been directed by Congress. Prior to the award, the Army stated, the program office procured these so-called M-code cards through external contracts leading in some cases to significant passthrough costs and reduced buying power. This IDIQ contract provides the Army access to a direct supply source for the MAPS and DAPS systems.

“Because BAE Systems’ M-Code cards are currently the only tested and validated hardware compatible with MAPS and DAPS, it made sense to partner with them on this IDIQ contract,” said Michael Trzeciak, project manager for PNT within the Army’s Program Executive Office for Intelligence, Electronic Warfare and Sensors. “The contract facilitates procurement of multiple variants of the M-code card – meeting end system compatibility requirements for Mounted and Dismounted APNT solutions now and into the future.”

The contract was awarded through the Defense Information Systems Agency’s Defense Information Technology Contracting Organization and provides the program office a direct link to the vendor, which will enable more efficient technical support and integration, the Army said.