The Air Force on May 11 awarded a $52.7 million engineering and manufacturing development contract to Raytheon for the Three-Dimensional Expeditionary Long-Range Radar (3DELRR) system. The radar is a C-band follow-on system for the AN/TPS-75, and it can track aircraft, missiles, and remotely piloted aircraft. Raytheon originally won a $19.5 million EMD contract for the program in 2014, but Northrop Grumman and Lockheed Martin filed protests over the decision with the Government Accountability Office. When the Air Force reopened the competition, a Raytheon appeal of that decision was denied in federal claims court. The Air Force now plans to buy a total of 35 of the new radars with an anticipated initial operational capability of 2023, Air Force Life Cycle Management Center spokeswoman Patty Welsh told Air Force Magazine. Under the May 11 contract, Raytheon “will provide EMD of three 3DELRR production representative units.”
Airmen and Guardians in the Active and Reserve component, as well as civilian employees, in “mission critical and high-risk populations” are now required to receive influenza vaccinations annually to “preserve force readiness,” according to a recent Department of the Air Force memo.