[SatNews]… "team ensures all systems are operational and available, enabling the Air Force to provide the continuous, complete and current weather information that is so critical to our military for mission success."
Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) has been awarded an indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity contract valued at up to $300 million to continue helping U.S. Air Force Weather (AFW) deliver a full range of terrestrial and space environmental information, products and services to military users worldwide.
The Air Force, Army, special operations forces and others rely on AFW environmental information and forecasts for mission planning, combat operations by military units in the field, and airfield and flight operations.
Under the Systems Engineering, Management and Sustainment (SEMS) III contract, Northrop Grumman will continue to facilitate enterprise-level systems engineering, systems management and sustainment services. In addition, the company will support scientific projects, the transition of new capability to operations, logistics analysis and management, and testing and fielding support. The company has been the prime contractor for SEMS since 2002.
Northrop Grumman's SEMS work includes supporting AFW's continuing enhancement of existing systems, development of enterprise-level distribution methods that use network-centric services, expanding on-demand capabilities and fully integrating environmental domain data from land, sea, atmosphere and space sensors.
"We are very pleased to build upon our strong partnership with the Air Force Weather community as we work together to implement the government's single baseline architecture for the future," said Linnie Haynesworth, vice president and general manager, Intelligence Systems and Reconnaissance division, Northrop Grumman Information Systems. "The Northrop Grumman SEMS team ensures all systems are operational and available, enabling the Air Force to provide the continuous, complete and current weather information that is so critical to our military for mission success. We have a long history of delivering strong performance and are dedicated to increasing performance levels to satisfy existing and emerging missions while reducing total cost of ownership."
Supported systems include the Weather Data Analysis, Point Analysis Intelligence System and Air Force Weather Web Services, which provide timely data and services to warfighters making critical operational decisions; the Space Weather Analysis and Forecast System, which characterizes the near Earth electrical and magnetic fields for global Defense Department space operations and communications; and operational numerical weather modeling systems including the Land Information System, Weather Research and Forecast Model, Cloud Depiction and Forecast System II, and AFWA Coupled Assimilation and Prediction System to analyze and predict environmental conditions worldwide for mission planning, current operations and post-strike analysis.
The SEMS III contract was awarded by the 55th Contracting Squadron, based at Offutt Air Force Base. Work will be performed primarily at the Air Force Weather Agency, also headquartered at Offutt. AFWA runs the strategic center for weather for the Air Force and supplies all weather-related information to the Air Force, Army, other Defense Department activities, the intelligence community and many civilian agencies.
Northrop Grumman was first awarded SEMS in 2002, initially tasked with consolidating the Air Force's weather systems to reduce the costs of maintaining individual weather systems. Under related contracts, the company has supported the Air Force's weather mission for more than 25 years.
Northrop Grumman is a global security company providing innovative systems, products and solutions in unmanned systems, cyber, C4ISR, and logistics and modernization to government and commercial customers worldwide. Please visit for more information.
