Boeing To Upgrade Computers On B-1B Bomber

SEATTLE, June 27, 1996 -- The Boeing Company has been awarded a $14 million contract by Rockwell International Corporation to upgrade the main computers aboard the B-1B bomber. The work is part of a larger upgrade awarded to Rockwell by the U.S. Air Force to enhance the B-1B's conventional-weapons capabilities.

The B-1B currently uses early 1980s-vintage computers as the main processors for the avionics system. These computers are limited in their capabilities compared to current computer technologies. With their increased memory and speed, the new computers will greatly improve the B-1B's ability to carry and release current and planned conventional weapons in the Air Force arsenal.

The new computer system also will provide growth for future enhancements such as on-board mission planning, real-time information-in-the-cockpit and map-aided terrain following, all of which the B-1B will need as it heads into the next century.

The Boeing effort includes requirements definition, hardware selection and hardware/software integration. The work will be performed in Seattle and Oklahoma City, Okla., without a substantial increase in employment. Boeing intends to select a subcontractor for hardware development and production later this year.

The nine-month contract for this award is the beginning of an Engineering and Manufacturing Development program that is expected to run through the year 2001. The total potential dollar value of the program to Boeing is $125 million.

"Boeing developed a mission capability in the early 1980s that served the B-1B well," said Paul Collins, Boeing B-1B program manager. "It is time to bring the B-1B's computer suite up-to-date. We are pleased to play a major role in this important upgrade."

Boeing was one of four associate contractors on the B-1B production program, the other three being Rockwell, Eaton and General Electric. The offensive avionics system provided by Boeing allows the B-1B to follow terrain at a low altitude, navigate to its targets, align and launch weapons, and return to a recovery air base.