General Dynamics (GD) Advanced Information Systems has delivered the 1,500th advanced mission computer (AMC) and 1,000th Type 3 AMC to the US Navy, marking a production milestone for the company.
Produced under the Advanced Mission Computer and Displays programme (AMC&D), the new generation computing capability will replace the ageing AYK-14 mission computer systems and CRT displays with integrated AMCs, network switches and high resolution displays currently being used on US naval aircraft platforms.
Tracy Barkhimer, the Air Combat Electronics office (PMA-209) programme manager captain, said the mission computers have been and continue to be extremely versatile and highly reliable systems for fleet users.
"They provide mission computing capabilities for many major naval aircraft platforms. The AYK-14 mission computers in the F/A-18A-Ds, E-2Cs, and SH-60Bs are still in service and have been for more than 35 years, while AMC&D products are entering their 10th year of service." Barkhimer added.
The US naval platforms that use AMC&D system include the AV-8B Harrier, the F/A-18A-D Hornet, the E-2D Advanced Hawkeye, the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet and the EA-18G Growler.
Mike Tweed-Kent, GD Advanced Information Systems Mission Integration Systems division, vice president and general manager, said: "AMC is built on a well-defined open systems architecture, allowing for rapid insertion of mission-specific technologies at lower costs."
The AMC is the nerve centre of the Super Hornet and provides situational awareness and combat systems control to the flight crew.
AMC is a ruggedised, high-performance, reliable display-processing system, which can process high-speed data flows from the latest sensor technologies.
The system is designed to operate in extreme environmental conditions and perform general purpose, input / output, video, voice and graphics processing.
