An MH-60R Strikehawk helicopter picks up cargo aboard the frigate USS Ford during deployment with the aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis. Harris Corp. equipment handles the communications link between the helicopter and ship. U.S. Navy

Harris Corp. won a $7.5 million contract to build communications equipment for surveillance helicopters that help Navy ships see enemies a greater distance away.
The contract potentially is worth $350 million over the next decade.
There are several defense companies in Brevard County -- including DRS Optronics, Symetrics and others -- that build equipment for some of the largest helicopter programs in the military, including the Apache, Blackhawk and Kiowa helicopters.
Harris and three other Brevard companies also will make components on the next-generation helicopter that will fly the president of the United States.
Experts say capturing these large, multiyear contracts helps the local economy by adding high tech, high wage jobs which have a multiplier effect, filtering down to help retailers, restaurants and real estate.
Harris employs about 6,400 people in Brevard. This contract will have no immediate impact on local staff levels.
Aerospace analysts say now is a good time for Harris to strengthen its ties to the military helicopter sector, which could hit $10 billion in overall sales this year, with many of the programs being upgraded, overhauled or getting entirely new aircraft.
For the just-announced helicopter contract, called Hawklink, Melbourne-based Harris will be making data links for the Navy MH-60R. These data links are faster and have less interference than current systems, and can transmit tactical, video, radar, acoustic and other sensor data more than 100 nautical miles.
The MH-60R is a relatively new program, with only a handful currently flying. Harris said, however, that if the Navy follows through on plans to build 350 MH-60Rs, the program value for the company could balloon to $350 million.
The helicopters depend on the Harris data links for "maritime patrols," said Richard Aboulafia, vice president and an analyst for the Fairfax, Va.-based Teal Group. The communications equipment Harris provides on the MH-60R program "isn't just a nice add-on -- it's an absolute necessity. The overall helicopter market is growing . . . and helicopters themselves are getting smarter."
These helicopters are "very important to the Navy because they extend the sensor range of the ship that carries it," said Frank Colucci, a contributing editor for the Alexandria, Va.-based American Helicopter Society.
He added that the sensors and data-communications systems on these helicopters can be used for hunting subs and were heavily used in the first Gulf War. Now, many of the platforms that used this equipment are being upgraded or replaced, including the Apache, Blackhawk, Chinook, Cobra and others.
Network-centric communications --that link up ships, planes, soldiers and commanders on the battlefield -- are "Harris' bread-and-butter," Colucci said. "If they do well on the MH-60R program, they have a shot at getting on the ground floor of other helicopter programs."
Linking up a community with a defense-based company like Harris or DRS Optronics also is highly desirable because of the "multiplier effect" of money trickling down to boost retailers, restaurants or real estate when new hires move down, said Ossama Mikhail, an assistant professor of economics for the University of Central Florida's College of Business.
Harris and Northrop Grumman winning billion-dollar contracts is "good news for the community," he said. "These companies are well-established, and they are investing in the community. That continues a strong job market and demands highly skilled people."
Mikhail argued that even if defense-spending begins to wane, revenues at these firms should stay strong because the contracts are long term and that, "even in peacetime, the military has to be up on new developments and new technology."