U.S. Navy contracts BAE for $30m IFF upgrade

U.S. Navy contracts BAE Systems for $30 million IFF transponder upgrade, according to a press release.

BAE Systems has received a 30 million US dollar award from the United States Navy to modernise the AN/APX-123A(V) Common Transponder, a device that helps prevent friendly-fire incidents by identifying aircraft and other platforms as friend or foe.

The refresh is intended to improve cybersecurity, processing capacity and overall interoperability across air defence, weapons, air-traffic control and range-instrumentation roles. BAE Systems said the new design will replace existing Identification Friend or Foe transponders on a wide range of current and future aircraft, unmanned systems and ships while preserving form, fit and function so that operators do not need to modify airframes or hull structures.

According to the company the updated unit will be certified to the Mark XIIB IFF standard and equipped for Mode S and Mode 5 encrypted exchanges. Additional receive channels will allow passive detection of Mode 5 Level 2 signals and Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast In, expanding situational awareness for crews.

“Common transponders provide our service men and women with a reliable and secure solution to help them identify friendly forces and make decisions in a variety of threat environments,” said Seth Guanu, programme area director for Combat Identification Products at BAE Systems, in the press release. “The level of speed, security, and accuracy matters to support interoperability across U.S. forces. This modernization effort enables us to deliver a critical capability to thousands of existing applications and equip emerging platforms.”

BAE Systems noted that an open-systems architecture using high-density field-programmable gate arrays will permit future capability growth through software rather than hardware changes. Work will take place at the company’s Greenlawn, New York and Austin, Texas facilities, with flight-qualified production hardware expected to reach users in 2027.

The firm said it has delivered more than 16 000 transponders and 1 500 interrogators over eight decades of Identification Friend or Foe development, experience it claims will help the updated AN/APX-123A(V) meet forthcoming cyber and crypto requirements while eliminating obsolescence in the current fleet.