OREANDA-NEWS. The U.S. Navy's Naval Supply Systems Command (NAVSUP) has awarded Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTN) up to $104 million to conduct operations and maintenance for the Relocatable Over-the-Horizon Radar (ROTHR) program. ROTHR is a long-range surveillance radar used by the U.S. government in counter narco-terrorism operations. Raytheon designed and built ROTHR and will provide operations support, modernization and maintenance of the radar system.

"Raytheon and ROTHR technology help to make the world a safer place," said Dave Wajsgras, president of Raytheon Intelligence, Information and Services (IIS). "Our team will work closely with the U.S. Navy's Forces Surveillance Support Center and the Joint Interagency Task Force South, tracking hundreds of illegal activities every year that threaten to enter our borders."

ROTHR is a high-frequency radar system originally designed and built to provide long-range detection and tracking of aircraft and ships. Each radar provides more than 2.5 million square miles of coverage area, resulting in extremely low operational costs.

"Raytheon will provide critical mission support to ROTHR, collecting vital detection and tracking data for operational commanders," said Todd Probert, vice president of Mission Support and Modernization at Raytheon IIS. "This new contract demonstrates trust in Raytheon to bring innovative, no-fail sustainment, modernization and operations support to the critical mission of securing our borders."

ROTHR is the primary long-range air detection system for the Join Interagency Task Force South, or JIATF-S, which coordinates the detection and interdiction of illicit trafficking and other narco-terrorist threats to U.S. national security. In just one interdiction, ROTHR operations led directly to the seizure of 4.5 metric tons of cocaine, valued at approximately $90 million. The new contract covers operations and maintenance at ROTHR's six locations in Puerto Rico, Texas and Virginia.