Leonardo UK Ltd. and its U.S.-based subsidiary, Leonardo Electronics US Inc., today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with U.S.-based Sierra Nevada Corporation (SNC) that brings the companies together to jointly address a range of international defence and security markets. The project is designed to capitalize on each company’s technical expertise and draw on strengths in identified markets where they have relevant infrastructure and experience. With 40+ locations across 19 U.S. states, SNC will support the further development of Leonardo Electronics US Inc. as it expands its engineering, assembly and manufacturing capabilities. At the same time, Leonardo will leverage its success exporting airborne sensor products and close work with customers in the European, Middle East and Asia Pacific regions, and incorporate SNC’s capabilities to add value to relevant projects.
Mark Hamilton, Managing Director of Electronics UK, Leonardo said: “The United States is a strategic market for Leonardo and SNC is a leader in innovative technology solutions for aerospace and defence. Our relationship to date has proven extremely successful and it makes sense for us to expand this further in one of our strategic domains. We look forward to working with SNC to deliver world-class defence solutions and electronics capabilities to the U.S. and beyond.”
Leonardo and SNC have worked together previously on several projects for U.S. and international customers, with SNC selecting Leonardo as its radar supplier of choice for maritime patrol aircraft programmes. Most recently, SNC chose Leonardo to supply its Osprey 50 E-scan surveillance radar for the RAPCON-X intelligence, surveillance & reconnaissance (ISR) aircraft.
Tim Owings, Executive Vice President, Mission Solutions and Technologies, SNC said: “In my time at SNC I have witnessed its impressive growth. From expanding across the U.S. to now having locations in the U.K. and Germany, it’s been an honor to be part of this journey. To collaborate with Leonardo – a proven, trusted partner – to support further expansion simply makes sense.”
Having established an effective, transparent and trusted working relationship, the companies are looking toward future joint projects. This could include expanding the firms’ collaboration relating to the RAPCON-X family of systems, as well as opportunities in the electronic warfare (EW) domain, drawing on products such as the Leonardo SAGE Electronic Support Measure (ESM) system.
Both companies possess complementary technologies and capabilities that could immediately increase capability for the warfighter. SNC is best known for its unique mission applications, while Leonardo offers world-class sensors that span the electromagnetic spectrum. These range from radio frequency (RF), including radar and EW, to electro-optics (EO). Both companies own expertise in integration, with Leonardo at the forefront of deep sensor integration research as part of its work on the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP), and SNC’s ability to rapidly engineer, integrate ISR solutions, and re-configure aircraft of nearly any size and shape to create the best mission solution for its customers.
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