Leonardo has signed a contract worth approximately 180 million euros to provide NATO with electronic protection training systems. The contract was awarded by the UK Ministry of Defense, the host nation of the NATO "Joint Electronic Warfare Core Staff" (JEWCS), which is based at the Royal Navy air base at Yeovilton. Equipment and services will be provided over the next four years by Leonardo's center of excellence in Luton, United Kingdom, dedicated to electronic warfare.
The company has been selected as part of an international tender and will also integrate technologies from Cobham and Electronics partners into the supply.
JEWCS is the NATO agency responsible for the electronic security domain.
When the allies carry out operations, the risk of being interrupted by the enemy's communications, GPS and radar signals is high. Training is an extremely important factor for experiencing these conditions and learning how to manage them. JEWCS has among its main tasks the formation of the Armed Forces through the simulation of hostile scenarios generated by enemy electronic countermeasures. To provide these services, the agency uses high-tech systems in training sites across Europe, enabling the Armed Forces to enhance their skills in areas such as surveillance and electronic countermeasures.
For effective training, countermeasures simulation must be state-of-the-art, therefore in step with the latest technological developments of the opposing forces. Leonardo is the leading European provider of technology and training for electronic warfare and for this contract it will provide solutions for air, ground and sea training. Pod-based aircraft self-protection equipment will be provided for aerial applications, along with an anti-ship missile defense analysis infrastructure (NASMDEF - NATO Anti-Ship Missile Defense Evaluation Facility). Thanks to these components, made mostly by Cobham, users will train to use countermeasures to protect ships from incoming threats. For land and sea applications, reinforced vehicles and shelters will be used, equipped with simulators, stimulators and interference devices for the production of Electronics, as Leonardo's subcontractor.
Leonardo's experience in the electronic warfare sector includes the design and development of protection systems and ISR (Intelligence Surveillance and Recconaissance) for allied aircraft, for example for Eurofighter Typhoons and AW159 helicopters. The Leonardo Academy in Lincoln offers specialized training, while significant investments are dedicated to the development of the latest generation countermeasures such as the anti-IED (Improvised Explosive Device) Guardian for ground troops and the BriteCloud for fighter aircraft pilots.
The JEWCS contract is the most recent example of a long-standing partnership with NATO in the field of security technologies. Leonardo collaborates with the NATO Communication and Information Agency (NCIA) in the cyber security field, to protect over 70.000 NATO users worldwide from the danger of cyber attacks. The company also provided multiple systems and support for the NATO Air Command and Control System (ACCS), the Alliance's air command and control platform. In October 2018 Leonardo received a prestigious award from the Scientific and Technology Organization, a NATO organization dedicated to technologies applied to Defense, thanks to the development of a new approach to simulation and training. Over 50 air defense radars have also been delivered to multiple Alliance countries under the Security Investment Program (NSIP), as well as Guardian systems provided to protect NATO vehicles engaged in Afghanistan from radio-controlled explosive devices.