GOLETA, Calif., Aug. 30, 2006 /PRNewswire/ -- Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTN) has received a $20.7 million contract award for continued production of its ALE-50 line of towed decoys.

The award represents the 10th production lot of ALE-50 equipment ordered for the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy as part of an original contract that began in December 1996. The Lot 10 contract calls for 862 decoys for the Air Force and was awarded by the 542nd Combat Sustainment Group, Warner Robins Air Logistics Center, Ga. Equipment acquired by the Lot 10 award will be delivered through September 2008.

Raytheon recently achieved production of its 20,000th ALE-50 decoy and 10 years of on-time deliveries. "Timeliness, effectiveness, and reliability are the hallmarks of the ALE-50," said Pat Hurley, vice president and general manager of Raytheon Electronic Warfare Systems. "Every decoy we produce carries our commitment to the warfighter." Completion of the Lot 10 program will bring the total number of decoys produced by Raytheon to 23,365.

Towed decoy systems provide enhanced aircraft survivability by acting as a preferential target for many types of missile threats. Raytheon's ALE-50 system has played a key role in aircraft self-protection for several military conflicts and is currently operational on F-16, B-1B and F/A-18 aircraft. Work on the towed decoy system is being done at Raytheon's Space and Airborne Systems business by its Electronic Warfare Systems organization located in Goleta, Calif.

Raytheon Space and Airborne Systems (SAS) is the leading provider of sensor systems giving warfighters the most accurate and timely information available for the network-centric battlefield. With 2005 revenues of $4.2 billion and 13,000 employees, SAS is headquartered in El Segundo, Calif. Additional facilities are in Goleta, Calif.; Forest, Miss.; Dallas, McKinney and Plano, Texas; and several international locations.

Raytheon Company, with 2005 sales of $21.9 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:
  Ron Colman
  805.879.2041

SOURCE: Raytheon Company

CONTACT: Ron Colman of Raytheon Company, +1-805-879-2041

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