Lockheed Martin to Upgrade Missile Defense Agency's Multi-Domain C2 Capability

On August 10, the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) awarded Lockheed Martin Corporation a $157 million contract to augment the Command, Control, Battle Management & Communications (C2BMC) system, the integrating element of the U.S. Missile Defense System, the Bethesda, Maryland-based company said.

To advance the C2BMC’s capability, Lockheed Martin will make improvements to the Ground-Based Midcourse Defense (GMD) system, which includes silo-based interceptors, connections to sensors on land and sea, distributed fire control and launch support systems. Currently, the GMD system engages a threat using the best single source data from multiple radars. The upgrade to C2BMC, known as Spiral 8.2-7, will provide the GMD with a single, real-time, composite picture of threat system tracks by correlating and fusing data from a broader set of sensors, including satellites, ground- and ship-based radars. Once the spiral upgrade is complete, the GMD system will see the same battlespace picture currently seen by combatant commanders, the company reported. Additionally, Spiral 8.2-7 will enable C2BMC to report hypersonic threat activity onto the military's Link-16 tactical data link network and display to operators.

“C2BMC is a 21st century battle management system, with a global infrastructure capable of supporting many different types of missions,” said Mark Johnson, Lockheed's director of Missile Defense Solutions. “As customers look for innovations to advance joint all-domain operations, they can look to C2BMC.”

Fielded in 2004, C2BMC is one of the first operationally deployed multi-domain systems, integrating systems and sensors operating in space, on land and at sea, according to the company. The network operates 24/7 to support real-world operations at more than 30 locations around the world, including U.S. Strategic, Northern, European, Indo-Pacific, Space and Central Commands.