With the Army's recent award of a Rifleman radio contract to Harris Corp. and Thales Defense and Security, General Dynamics has dropped out of the program, according to a report in Defense News.
That leaves Harris and Thales the only current competitors for task orders that could ultimately amount to nearly 200,000 radios. General Dynamics had been involved in the early fielding of more than 21,000 radios as a partner to Thales, but declined to go further.
Related: Army awards $4B Rifleman radio contract
"We do continue to support the currently fielded Rifleman radios as well as invest in the radio's future design based on soldier feedback," said a General Dynamics Mission Systems spokeswoman. "It is important to note that the Army's new Rifleman radio acquisition strategy allows radio vendors to offer new radios with enhanced capabilities at regular intervals."
The Rifleman Radio is a lightweight, rugged, handheld radio that transmits voice and data via the Soldier Radio Waveform. It acts as its own router and can be linked to the Warfighter Information Network – Tactical. It also can connect to Nett Warrior, an Android smartphone system that enables soldiers to send messages, access mission-related applications, and track one another's locations, according to the Army.
