US Navy Buys AN/AQS-20A Sonars from Raytheon

February 20, 2014

Raytheon Integrated Defense Systems,based in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, has been awarded a $35.5 million contract for the purchase of three AN/AQS-20A sonar, mine detecting sets with ancillary equipment.

The system will be deployed from the US Navy’s Littoral Combat Ships as part of the Mine Countermeasures Mission Package. The system is an airborne sonar utilized by the MH-60S and MH-53E helicopters.

The AN/AQS-20A sonar, mine detecting set is a mine hunting and identification system with acoustic and identification sensors housed in an underwater towed body. The acoustic sensors are designed for the detection, classification and localization of bottom, close-tethered, and volume targets in a single pass. The identification sensor is designed for the identification of bottom mines.

The contract includes options which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract to $199,692,601. Work is expected to be completed by February 2015.

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Press Release, February 20, 2014; Image: Raytheon