Defense software company Fuse Integration has received a $16 million contract to supply its Fuse CORE 4.0 virtualized network systems for the software modernization of the U.S. Navy’s E-2D Advanced Hawkeye aircraft.
According to the U.S. Naval Air Systems Command, Fuse Integration’s product will update the external networking systems of the aircraft’s Delta System Software Configuration-5 setup to improve security and battle management controls.
Shawn Thompson, advanced development assistant program manager for systems engineering at NAVAIR’s E-2/C-2 Airborne Command & Control Systems Program Office, said CORE adds another cybersecurity layer through new firewall applications in the Advanced Hawkeye aircraft’s beyond line-of-sight upgrade program.
Fuse Integration’s systems also provide a small and light router with power and cooling features designed to improve platform performance and replace bulky and outdated routers, Thompson added. He also said the CORE router can simultaneously host applications, enhancing the E-2D aircraft’s mission capabilities.
Other E-2D Advanced Hawkeye tooling includes Lockheed Martin’s APY-9 radar for which the company has already delivered 75 units under a contract with Northrop Grumman, the manufacturer of the early warning aircraft.