Under this five-year contract, Logicon will support in the development of the world's first laser-carrying aircraft designed to destroy attacking theater ballistic missiles shortly after being launched.

Specifically, Logicon will provide assistance, advice, and expertise in a variety of technical areas needed by the Air Force in producing a laser-carrying aircraft. Those technical areas include the high-energy laser itself, ways to compensate for atmospheric effects on that laser, control of the laser in reaching and destroying attacking missiles, and integrating the various systems on board a specially modified Boeing 747 freighter aircraft. Also included is expertise in systems engineering, modeling and simulation, and computing systems.

The contractor will also stay abreast of advances in the related technologies of other programs that could be used by the Airborne Laser program office.

Under the contract, Logicon has eight associate companies it can call upon.

They include Logicon Technical Services Inc. in Los Angeles, Calif.; Atlantic Aerospace in Greenbelt, Md.; Mission Research in Santa Barbara, Calif.; SAIC in McClean, Va.; Schafer Corp in Chelmsford, Mass.; Science and Engineering, in Albuquerque, N.M.; S. Systems, in Oklahoma City, Okla.; and The Optical Sciences Company in Anaheim, Calif.

This new laser-carrying aircraft, also known as the YAL-1A Attack Laser, is a multi-billion-dollar program being managed here by the Airborne Laser System Program Office. The Air Force and industry team developing the YAL-1A Attack Laser also includes Boeing Defense Group of Seattle, Wash.; Northrop Grumman Space and Electronics Group of Redondo Beach, Calif.; and Lockheed-Martin Missiles & Space of Sunnyvale, Calif.