What is in this article?:
- Futures of Four Companies Ride on Outcome of Jammer Competition
- Revolutionary Solution Needed
- Embarrassment of Riches
On Tuesday, the Navy issued a solicitation that could end up driving consolidation of the military-electronics business in the years ahead.
The service released a request for proposals as it begins the "technology development" phase of its next-generation jammer program, an effort that will eventually be worth more than $10 billion.
All of the major players in the arcane world of electronic warfare -- BAE Systems PLC (IW 1000/123), ITT Exelis, Northrop Grumman (IW 500/46) and Raytheon Co. (IW 500/49) -- will bid, and whoever prevails will dominate that segment of the defense market for decades to come.
The smart money says this competition is mainly between BAE Systems and Northrop Grumman, since they have the longest experience and biggest market shares in electronic countermeasures.
Raytheon has a hand in so many other facets of military electronics that it doesn't have to win the jammer program to thrive, whereas Exelis is a smaller player in a market segment overcrowded with world-class behemoths.
However, the military enterprise has changed markedly since the existing ALQ-99 jammer first debuted in the 1970s, and the rules governing Pentagon solicitations often result in unexpected outcomes. So anyone could win.
