Rockwell Awarded Navstar Project
Rockwell International Corp. was selected by the Air Force on Friday to produce a new generation of satellite-based navigation terminals in what is expected to be the largest defense electronics program in history.
The Air Force space division in El Segundo, which is managing the program, said it selected Rockwell’s Collins Government Avionics division of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, to produce 6,100 of the terminals through the end of this decade.
Rockwell beat Magnavox Government & Industrial Electronics Co., which had planned to produce the terminals at its Torrance division. Rockwell and Magnavox have been competing head-to-head on the program since 1979.
The terminals are part of the Navstar Global Positioning System, which relies on a “constellation” of 18 orbiting satellites to broadcast navigation signals to users on Earth. Ultimately, the Air Force will buy as many as 26,000 terminals for use aboard ships, airplanes, submarines, helicopters, tanks and with troops in the field.
The Air Force did not disclose the estimated value of the contract, but industry sources indicated that the value could be about $375 million. There are several different versions of the terminals with widely differing prices.
Industry sources say the military market for all of the 26,000 terminals is $1.5 billion, but the Pentagon is likely to hold a new competition in 1989 for follow-on production.
The Navstar system will permit military users to determine their position on the Earth to within 16 meters. Civilian users will have access to a signal that will be accurate to within 100 meters. The system will be fully operational in 1988 or 1989.
The selection of Rockwell puts the giant diversified manufacturer in a prime position to dominate what is expected to be a multibillion-dollar market in future years. It already has a contract to build Navstar satellites.
In addition to the large military market, an industrial, commercial and consumer market of several hundred thousand units is expected to develop.
Col. John Porter, Navstar program manager, said the Air Force plans to issue a contract to Rockwell by April 15 that will disclose the value of future production.
That contract will provide for Rockwell to continue conducting research on integrating Navstar terminals into their intended vehicles.
