Harris Corporation, an international communications and information technology company, has been awarded an $11 million order by the U.S. Air Force and the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) to be provided with Falcon III multiband handheld radios and vehicular amplifier systems.  

Officials with Harris Corporation (News - Alert) said that the U.S. Air Force is acquiring the Falcon III AN/PRC-152(C) multiband, multimission handheld radios to provide line-of-sight and beyond-line-of-sight tactical communications.  

According to company officials, the AN/PRC-152(C) is the most widely fielded NSA Type-1 certified, JTRS SCA-certified handheld radio, with more than 130,000 units deployed worldwide.

The DoD also is acquiring Falcon III AN/VRC-110 systems, an amplifier adapter that includes two AN/PRC-152(C) radios that serve as handheld transceivers, for use in multiple variants of the Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles.  

"We continue to deliver Falcon III radios to the Air Force and provide airmen with secure tactical communications, which is vital to success in a wide range of mission areas," said Brendan O'Connell, president, U.S. Department of Defense business of Harris RF Communications, in a statement.  

O'Connell said that the AN/PRC-152(C) and its vehicular adapter are also widely deployed by all branches of the U.S. Department of Defense and key U.S. allies.  

According to him, the AN/VRC-110 is installed in the majority of the DoD's MRAP vehicle fleet, providing both line-of-sight and beyond-line-of-sight communications.

TMCnet in October reported that Harris Corporation has been awarded a nine-year, $273 million (CAD) services contract by the Government of Canada for the CF-18 Avionics Optimized Weapon System Support (OWSS) program.  

Officials with Harris Corporation said that this contract is for a six-year period plus three additional option years, and will be in effect until the end of the CF-18 Hornet fighter aircraft life expectancy in 2020.  

Company officials said that under the contract with Harris Canada. Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary, Harris will provide repair and overhaul, engineering support, program management, life-cycle support, and obsolescence and material management services to support the avionics systems on the CF-18 Hornet fighter aircraft.