NATO Achieves First Step on Theatre Ballistic Missile Defence Capability

Someoneforyou

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NATO Achieves First Step on Theatre Ballistic Missile Defence Capability
27 January 2011

On 27 January 2011, NATO's first ever theatre ballistic missile defence (TBMD) capability has been handed over to NATO's military commanders. The handover took place at the NATO Combined Air Operations Centre (CAOC) in Uedem, Germany, in the presence of NATO Deputy Secretary General, Ambassador Claudio Bisogniero, and civil and military authorities from NATO and host nation Germany.

The NATO Combined Air Operations Centre demonstrated how this interim capability allows NATO commanders, for the first time ever, to do limited ballistic missile defence planning and exchange information with national ballistic missile defence assets.

"The handover of this interim capability marks an important step in NATO's missile defence efforts," said Ambassador Claudio Bisogniero. "In line with the NATO Lisbon Summit decision, this capability will be further expanded to form the cornerstone of a future missile defence system for the protection of territory and populations."

"NATO commanders now have for the first time an initial, limited but integrated ability to manage a defence battle to protect deployed forces against ballistic missile attacks," said Brigadier General Alessandro Pera, Head of the Active Layered Theatre Ballistic Missile Defence (ALTBMD) Programme Office. During a short ceremony, he handed over the capability to Major General Mark F. Ramsay, Deputy Chief of Staff Operations & Intelligence, representing the Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR) as the operational user of the capability.

A rigorous 'ensemble' test, held from 6 to 10 December 2010 at the Integration Test Bed hosted at the NATO Consultation, Command and Control Agency (NC3A) facilities in The Hague, verified the ability of the NATO Command and Control system to connect and direct a multinational coalition of weapon and sensor systems in a missile defence battle.

"This interim capability meets a first batch of military requirements and was delivered in time and within the budget envelope. It is a good example of phased programme implementation under the auspices of the Conference of National Armaments Directors (CNAD), combining NATO and national assets in a common architecture" said Patrick Auroy, NATO Assistant Secretary General for Defence Investment and Chairman of the CNAD.

A Field Test followed immediately after the Ensemble Test at the capability's first deployed location, the NATO Combined Air Operations Centre in Uedem, Germany. These two tests were the last in a series of tests of this interim capability, which also included 'live fire' tests off the coast of Crete, Greece in 2009. "The performance of the capability met its military requirements," added General Alessandro Pera.

Weapon and sensor systems from five Allies – France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and the United States - took part in the Ensemble Test, along with the NATO operators who will be using the capability.

This is an example of successful collaboration under the ALTBMD Programme Office, involving Allies, NATO military commanders, NATO Agencies such as NC3A and NACMA (NATO Air Command and Control System Management Agency), and the industry.

Under the ALTBMD Programme, NATO provides a command and control system that links sensors and interceptors from Nations into a capability that can protect deployed forces from ballistic missile attacks.

The ALTBMD Programme Office will continue to upgrade the NATO Command and Control System for Theatre Ballistic Missile Defence in incremental steps from 2013 to 2018, to field a more robust Final Operational Capability. In line with the Lisbon Summit decision of November 2010, the ALTBMD capability will also be expanded to protect not just deployed forces, but NATO European territories and populations as well.



Source: North Atlantic Treaty Organization
 

Someoneforyou

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NATO and ThalesRaytheonSystems sign contract for Theatre Missile Defence extension

NATO and ThalesRaytheonSystems sign contract for Theatre Missile Defence extension

1 FEBRUARY 2011

NATO and ThalesRaytheonSystems sign contract for Theatre Missile Defence extension
TRSPrime, a subsidiary of ThalesRaytheonSystems, was awarded a contract by the NATO ACCS Management Agency (NACMA) for enhancements to the Air Command and Control System (ACCS) as part of the Active Layered Theatre Ballistic Missile Defence (ALTBMD) programme being developed for the protection of deployed troops.

This award is for the Preliminary System Definition of the first phase of the ACCS TMD project and will be followed by the development, integration and testing of two increments leading to an Initial Operational Capability (IOC). The new functionality developed under the contract will provide sensor and weapon system configuration, management and coverage, air and missile track processing, dissemination, classification, display and alerting. It will also provide weapon system status, engagement, monitoring and control.

"As Allies decided at the NATO summit in Lisbon last November, the scope of ALTBMD will be expanded beyond the protection of deployed forces to also protect NATO European populations, territory and forces," said Dr. Gerhard van der Giet, General Manager NACMA. "The command and control enhancements developed under the ACCS TMD project provide a future foundation for Missile Defence."

ThalesRaytheonSystems will lead an industrial team of 11 partners to enhance the ACCS System, providing NATO with an integrated Air and Missile defence capability within its deployable entities, the Deployable Combined Air Operations Centre (DCAOC) and the Deployable Air Control Center, Recognised Air Picture (RAP) Production Centre, Sensor Fusion Post (DARS).

Notes:

1.The overall acquisition of the Active Layered Theatre Ballistic Missile Defence (ALTBMD) programme is ensured by the ALTBMD Programme Office as mandated by NATO since 2005.

2.ThalesRaytheonSystems industrial partners include Air Command Systems International (France), CASSIDIAN, an EADS Company (Germany), IABG mbH (Germany), INDRA (Spain), L-3 Communications ASA (UK), Lockheed Martin (US), Raytheon Company (US), Selex SI (Italy), Thales Group (France), Thales Communications (France), and Thales Naval (The Netherlands).

3.The NATO Air Command and Control First Level of Operational Capability (ACCS LOC1) programme developed by ThalesRaytheonSystems is designed to replace NATO's existing air command and control systems in Europe and will set new standards of interoperability for air operations by providing a single, integrated approach to planning, tasking, monitoring and mission execution.


ThalesRaytheonSystems CEO Jack Harrington and NACMA GM Dr Gerhard van der Giet


Source: NATO
 

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