Leonardo has announced a ‘long-term pricing agreement’ with Northrop Grumman Corporation to supply pointer/trackers for the US Army’s Common Infrared Countermeasures (CIRCM) programme.
The agreement means that Leonardo could eventually provide the service with more than 1200 pointer trackers, on top of 500 already delivered, the manufacturer noted in a 23 August company statement.
The pointers are to be delivered from Leonardo’s Edinburgh, UK, facility which produces a wide range of countermeasure and EW technology.
‘The CIRCM system is a countermeasure that will protect US Army aircrews and their aircraft from incoming missiles,’ said Leonardo.
‘It works by targeting and “dazzling” the threat’s infrared (IR) guidance system with a powerful laser. Leonardo’s pointer/tracker is at the heart of the system and directs the laser accurately onto the missile’s seeker, a powerful feat of engineering considering that the aircraft and missile are some distance apart and moving quickly in multiple directions.’
Leonardo and Northrop Grumman have previously worked to jointly develop the AN/AAQ-24(V) Nemesis DIRCM for the US DoD and UK MoD.
The CIRCM system will be equipped on US Army helicopters including CH-47 Chinook, UH-60 Black Hawk and AH-64 Apache models.
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