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The U.S. Army shared on Wednesday it awarded Bombardier Defense with a firm-fixed-price contract on Dec. 12, procuring one Global 6500 jet with options to purchase two additional aircraft over three years. These aircraft will support the prototyping efforts for the High Accuracy Detection and Exploitation System, known as HADES. The HADES prototypes will be the first U.S. Army-owned large-cabin business jets used for Aerial Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance platforms and provide advanced deep-sensing capabilities for multidomain operations against peer and near-peer adversaries. The delivery of the reconnaissance BizJet is set for Oct. 1, 2024.
The U.S. Army Contracting Command-Redstone Arsenal, in collaboration with the Army Fixed Wing Project Office, awarded Bombardier with the contract. To prepare for the HADES program, the Army began buying aerial ISR as a service in the form of aerial technology demonstrators from defense industry vendors in 2020. The demonstrators provide data about the platform performance, sensor integration, sensor performance and data distribution to the Army and joint force. The ATDs will also allow the Army to better understand the doctrine, training, personnel, facilities and sustainment needed to use the improved sensors and aircraft the program will bring.
According to Defense News the Army is moving away from the antiquated guardrail turboprop planes to prepare for potential large-scale conflict with Russia and China. The service is looking for a plane with better speed, payload capacity, greater duration and can see, detect and target threats from a greater distance. A spokesperson told Breaking Defense the contract award for the first plane is $66.4 million and has a value ceiling of $140 million, which would include the two additional aircraft.
"HADES will bring the Army increased range, speed, endurance and aerial ISR depth," Army fixed-wing aircraft Project Manager Col. Joe S. Minor said. "HADES will operate at higher altitudes than legacy turboprop platforms. Higher altitudes equate to an ability to sense farther and more persistently into areas of interest. Deep sensing is the Army's number-one operational imperative for the Army of 2030."