TEWKSBURY, Mass., Dec. 13, 2005 /PRNewswire/ -- Demonstrating an affordable and proven capability to strengthen America's port security, Raytheon Integrated Defense Systems (IDS) officials and Rhode Island legislative leaders recently commemorated the opening of the Athena Maritime Domain Awareness Fusion Center with a ribbon cutting ceremony.

The Athena system fuses a large number of existing sensor data to provide decision makers with the real-time maritime situational awareness they need to enable quick, responsive actions to protect the country's shoreline.

"Athena is a key information fusion program for the defense of our homeland," said Mary Petryszyn, vice president of IDS Joint Battlespace Integration (JBI) business area. "Athena is a multi-domain awareness system that uses live feeds from existing surveillance assets, fused with data from multiple databases and intelligence sources, to provide situational awareness for global, regional, and local level decision makers. This capability has been deployed and is proven. It also has applicability to other homeland security missions."

Attending the event were Gov. Don Carcieri, Sen. Jack Reed, Sen. Lincoln Davenport Chafee, Congressman Patrick Kennedy, and Congressman Jim Langevin, who joined IDS President Dan Smith and Petryszyn in cutting the ribbon.

"Affordability for our customers is vital. That's why JBI is focused on leveraging existing systems across the customer community into broader joint integrated mission capabilities, thereby taking advantage of investments that have been made and in turn creating new capabilities that are cost effective and fielded rapidly," said Petryszyn.

Joint Battlespace Integration is the integration of knowledge, assets, and capabilities across multiple Department of Defense and Department of Homeland Security missions, bringing effective solutions for warfighter advantage.

Based in Tewksbury, Mass., Integrated Defense Systems is Raytheon's leader in Joint Battlespace Integration. With a strong international and domestic customer base, including the U.S. Missile Defense Agency and the U.S. armed forces, Integrated Defense Systems provides a wide spectrum of integrated air and missile defense and naval and maritime warfighting solutions.

Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTN), with 2004 sales of $20.2 billion, is an industry leader in defense and government electronics, space, information technology, technical services, and business and special mission aircraft. With headquarters in Waltham, Mass., Raytheon employs 80,000 people worldwide.

  Contact:
   Guy Shields
   978.858.5246

SOURCE: Raytheon Company

CONTACT: Guy Shields of Raytheon Company, +1-978-858-5246

Web site: http://www.raytheon.com/