Qinetiq wins $170m contract with US Homeland Security dept

Qinetiq Group said it's Avantus unit has won a five-year $170m contract with the US Department of Homeland Security for its Tethered Aerostat Radar System (TARS).

TARS provides detection, tracking and monitoring capabilities in diverse environments at and beyond the US borders, Qinetiq said in a statement on Monday.

Under the deal, Qinetiq will deliver "aerostat operations, air-surface radar operations, ground control and data networking systems monitoring, and data analysis in support of border security and air sovereignty missions".

TARS is the largest new business competitive win for Avantus since its acquisition last year by Qinetiq. The contract takes the total new awards this year for Avantus to $827m, the company added.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com