Story ID: 9-2016-2 Elbit US
Elbit Systems Chases U.S. National Guard Procurements
By: Chris Pocock
Caption: The US subsidiary of the Israeli company offers a variety of aircraft protection and modernization solutions. 
Word Count: 315
Elbit Systems of America is showcasing its various capabilities at the U.S. National Guard Association convention and exhibition in Baltimore this coming weekend. The subsidiary of the Israeli defense company is chasing National Guard procurements that are executed separately from the mainstream Pentagon acquisition process.

The company is best known for its helmet-mounted displays (HMD), produced in joint venture with Rockwell Collins. The 20-year collaboration has now sold more than 1,000 of these, notably the Joint Helmet-Mounted Cueing System (JHMCS) for the F-15, F-16, and F-18 pilots of some 20 air arms, and now the HMD for the F-35. In Baltimore, Elbit will be highlighting line-of-sight helmet trackers that help combat helicopter pilots to land and take off in degraded visual conditions. The company says that these “will soon play a major role in cargo and utility aircraft.”

To protect U.S. Air National Guard F-16s, Elbit a is offering the infrared Passive Airborne Warning System (PAWS-US) for the detection of incoming missiles. Already in wide use on fighters, helicopters and commercial airliners, PAWS can be enhanced to become “a targeting quality sensor-to-shooter offensive solutions,” the company says. It is also showcasing semi-active and multi-mode seekers for smart munitions such as laser JDAM.

Elbit Systems of America has eight subsidiaries, one of them an maintenance, repair and overhaul organization in San Antonio, Texas, that was previously known as M7 Aerospace. Its activities include the sustainment of older aircraft acquired by the U.S. military, including two regional airliners: the C-23 Sherpa (formerly the Shorts 360) and the C-26 (formerly the Fairchild SA227 Metro/Merlin series). The company is the type certificate holder for the C/RC-26. It is providing CNS/ATM avionics upgrades for these aircraft to meet FAA and EASA requirements through 2030. It is also marketing a variety of avionics and aircraft performance upgrades for the C-130.