Hoeven: AeroVironment Awarded $43 Million to Equip Sky Range Aircraft With Phased-Array Antenna System

GRAND FORKS, N.D. – Senator John Hoeven today announced that AeroVironment has been awarded a $43 million contract by the Test Resource Management Center (TRMC) to equip Range Hawks with its phased-array antenna system as part of the Sky Range hypersonic missile testing program. The award builds on Hoeven’s efforts to recruit BlueHalo , which was later acquired by AeroVironment, to the state and build partnerships with North Dakota’s unmanned aviation, hypersonic missile and space operations. AeroVironment’s phased-array antennas are required for converting Global Hawk aircraft to Range Hawks, enabling them to track hypersonic missiles and other airborne and space-based threats, while communicating with satellites. The contract is supported by the $8.3 million partnership Hoeven worked to fund and establish between the company and Bismarck State College (BSC). This partnership created an engineering and manufacturing hub in Bismarck that gives students firsthand experience in working with phased-array technology. This college-to-career pipeline is critical to ensuring AeroVironment has the workforce it needs to take on this highly technical work for the Sky Range program. This comes as the latest expansion of AeroVironment’s operations in North Dakota, with the company having also: Brought its directed energy system to the state to be used in counter-drone research and development. Installed its counter-drone system AV Halo at GrandSKY, providing 360-degree long range radar surveillance and mission-ready operations software in support of Project ULTRA. “Sky Range revolutionizes the way we test hypersonic missiles. By using unmanned aircraft to track the missiles, rather than ships out at sea, Sky Range provides greater flexibility, lower costs and greater operational security. AeroVironment’s phased-array antenna system is crucial to these efforts, and today’s $43 million contract will ensure the Range Hawks have the communications and tracking capabilities needed to make these missile tests a reality,” said Hoeven. “We’ve worked hard to build partnerships across our state that attract innovative companies to North Dakota and enable them to meet the future defense needs of our country. AeroVironment is a great example as we continue supporting the work it’s doing with Sky Range, Project ULTRA, BSC and others.” -###-