[Avionics Today 07-29-2016] After reviewing 31 proposals, Naval Air Systems Command’s (Navair) Air Combat Electronics Program Office (PMA-209) awarded funding to 10 projects through the Avionics Component Improvement Program (AvCIP). AvCIP, which is funded by the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations (OPNAV), provides capital to address current naval avionics readiness problems, impending obsolescence issues and systems that are no longer reliable or are high-cost drivers for the fleet.
"Platforms across Navair face obsolescence issues," said Candace Chesser, program manager for PMA-209. "The projects selected to use AvCIP resources enable our acquisition and program managers to address, with near-term funds, current mission degraders and sustainment cost drivers. AvCIP supports the Commander’s focus areas of improving current readiness and increasing speed of capability to the fleet.”
OPNAV has programmed $9.5 million in support of 2017’s winning projects. The funds will benefit several naval aviation platforms/programs, including:
• PMA-208’s E/F Band obsolescence and DSQ-50A Scorer obsolescence;
• PMA-242’s HARM Guided Missile;
• PMA-265’s EA-18G Fiber Optic Harness;
• PMA-273’s TH-57 TACAN obsolescence;
• PMA-207’s RC-26D Surveillance Radar;
• PMA-205’s Portable Air Anti-Submarine Warfare;
• PMA-272’s APR-39 Depot Level Repair Reduction;
• PMA/W-170’s GPS Non-Volatile Memory Correction; and
• PMA-299’s FLIR Laser Reliability improvement.
Navair expects the projects to save the fleet more than $267 million in life-cycle costs, and several projects will aid in obsolescence issues to enable continued full mission capability.