Navy Awards Brunswick $10-Million Contract

Brunswick Corp. said Wednesday that its Costa Mesa defense division has been awarded a $10-million contract to build 500 Samson Tactical Aircraft Decoy Systems for the U.S. Navy.

Deliveries under the contract, which also includes an option for the purchase of an additional 500 of the units, are scheduled to begin next year, said Dave Thompson, general manager of the Costa Mesa facility.

The system being ordered by the Navy is an updated version of the pilotless drone used with stunning success by the Israeli Air Force during the 1982 Lebanon invasion. By imitating combat aircraft, the Samson confused Syrian air defense systems in the Bekka Valley, assisting Israeli pilots in the destruction of enemy surface-to-air missiles.

Under terms of the contract, Brunswick will train two other firms, including Tel Aviv-based Israel Military Industries, in the manufacture of the Samson system in order to provide the Defense Department secondary sources for the device.