Army awards new deal for Manpack radios
Harris Corp. gets a maximum $12.7 million contract to supply the two-channel, software-defined radios.
The Army, which last year said it was looking to create a “radio marketplace” for Manpack radios and expected to award contracts to multiple vendors, has awarded a maximum $12.7 million contract to Harris Corp. for radios, accessories and related services, according to a Defense Department announcement.
Manpack radios are versatile, two-channel, software-defined radios that can fit into a backpack or be mounted on vehicles and work with Rifleman radios as well as Nett Warrior smartphones. The Army recently used Manpacks during an exercise in Hawaii to demonstrate joint communications with the Navy. In that exercise, the radios, along with the Army’s Joint Battle Command-Platform and the Navy's Mobile User Objective System waveform, connected soldiers in five locations across a 200-mile area, allowing them to talk, text and share data.
The contract with Harris is a firm-fixed-price, multiple award task order, with the location of the work to be determined by each order. The deal, awarded after three bids were received, runs through March 20, 2026.