IDEX 2021: UAE's new land C2 system begins final development phase

The United Arab Emirates’ (UAE’s) Emirates Command & Control System (ECCS) Land Tactical System (ELTS), for which L3Harris Technologies is the prime contractor, has begun a second development phase that will culminate in full operating capability (FOC), Janes learned during the International Defence Exhibition & Conference (IDEX) 2021 trade show.

L3Harris (then Harris Corporation) was awarded a two-year USD189 million contract in September 2016 for the initial operating capability (IOC) of ELTS, which was achieved in late 2018. The IOC phase equipped a single brigade of the UAE Army, understood to be the Al Dhafra Brigade. Sub-contractors on the project included Saab (display hardware), DRS Technologies (in-vehicle electronic networking), and Systematic (SitaWare command-and-control [C2] software).

ELTS integrates various combat functions, including intelligence, situational awareness, weather conditions, tactical planning, and a common operational picture. It was integrated on several combat vehicle platforms and with the legacy tactical radio system from Thales.

The FOC phase will include integrating some unspecified new vehicles and modifying command post configurations to provide fewer but larger shelters to improve staff interaction. It is planned to equip another four brigades. Additional capacity will also be added to the Land Component Command headquarters. For this phase DRS Technologies is providing both display hardware and in-vehicle electronic networking, based on its latest mounted family of computer systems (MFOCS) technology. No timeline is available for when FOC will be achieved.