ARLINGTON, Texas (Dec. 22, 1999) - Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTNA, RTNB) has delivered and installed the U.S. Navy's first-ever P-3C Partial Aircrew Coordination Trainer (PACT) one month ahead of its scheduled ready-for-training date.

The P-3 aircraft, which has been in service for more than three decades, has recently evolved to undertake anti-surface and antisubmarine warfare missions.

To support this evolution in the aircraft, the P-3C PACT has been designed to provide training scenarios that teach crew coordination skills in obtaining information from the aircraft's sensor systems and communicating the technical data to other aircraft or command centers.

"This represents a significant milestone in Raytheon's P-3 product line," said Brian McKeon, vice president of Raytheon's military command and control/simulation organization. "This training system enables the Navy to train P-3C Anti-surface Warfare Improvement Program (AIP) aircrews on the capabilities of this very new aircraft as it is introduced to the fleet.

"The P-3C PACT, which is an important element of our growth in this product line, is a cost-effective training device that has been developed within a highly successful integrated program team environment involving the government and Raytheon."

The P-3C PACT provides training to a crew of five individuals involved in anti-surface warfare operations. These individuals man the tactical communications, navigation/communications, non-acoustic sensor, AVX-1 electro-optical system sensor and flight stations.

To meet crew coordination training goals, the P-3C PACT will simulate the aircraft's physical arrangements, computer/display system and communications system.

To conduct training ranging from initial crew coordination to mission rehearsal, the P-3C PACT currently provides three geographic data bases that include the areas of Bosnia, Korea and the Persian Gulf.

"The P-3C PACT will be an invaluable component of the training system provided for the P-3C AIP aircraft," said Bill Lee, Naval Air Systems Command's P-3C PACT program manager. "The PACT is also a fine example of the cost effectiveness of implementing a commercial off-the-shelf/non-developmental item design rather than a design using actual aircraft systems. The persistent and valuable cooperation of the government and contractor team members is the primary reason for this trainer's success."

The P-3C PACT, which is installed at Naval Air Station Jacksonville, Fla., is used by the Navy's VP-30 squadron and is projected to have an annual student throughput of approximately 5,000 students.

Raytheon Company, based in Lexington, Mass., is a global technology leader that provides products and services in the areas of commercial and defense electronics, engineering and construction, and business and special mission aircraft. Raytheon has operations throughout the United States and serves customers in more than 80 countries around the world.