Curtiss-Wright DS, Inc.

Curtiss-Wright DS, Inc., doing business as Curtiss-Wright Tactical Communications Group, is a for-profit subsidiary of Curtiss-Wright Controls, Inc. that manufactures and sustains the Battlefield Operations Support System (BOSS), a tactical data link and ground support platform for command and control operations across the U.S. military, primarily working as a prime contractor on full-and-open federal awards with no small business set-asides applied across the portfolio.

The vendor operates across 46 distinct customer agencies with a heavy concentration in the Department of Defense — 55 percent of combined potential value flows to the Air Force Materiel Command's Electronic Systems Center ($28 million across 28 awards), followed by the Air Force Materiel Command broadly ($11.4 million across 40 awards) and the Air Force Test Center ($6.6 million across 36 awards). The Navy's Naval Air Warfare Center ranks fifth in dollar value but leads in award count with 59 awards totaling $6.5 million. This concentration around Air Force and Navy platforms reflects BOSS's role as the primary tactical data link system for aviation test, combat operations, and mission support across those services. Award activity has grown substantially — from 13 in 2022 to 42 in 2024 — though the pace slowed to 28 awards in 2025 and 12 through mid-2026, with eleven awards (combined potential value $11.3 million) facing ultimate completion inside the next twenty-four months.

Capability portfolio centers on BOSS software licenses, hardware systems, maintenance and product support (Gold and Platinum plans), training, integration services, and technical support for tactical data link operations, particularly Link 16 and JREAP Appendix C protocols. Representative prime work includes a $9.278 million cost-plus-fixed-fee contract with the Air Force Electronic Systems Center for Royal Saudi Air Force ground support system sustainment through December 2027; a $1.224 million purchase order from Air Force Materiel Command at Eglin Air Force Base for BOSS Gold Support covering five years (April 2026 through April 2030) with four option years; a $599,999.88 purchase order from the Air Force for a BOSS software update (December 2024); and a $460,894.58 purchase order from the Electronic Systems Center for BOSS product support across nine platforms under a Gold Plan service level agreement (September 2022 through September 2026). Place of performance for prime work spans Tewksbury, Massachusetts (headquarters), Edwards Air Force Base, California, Pope Field, North Carolina, and subordinate Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps installations nationwide.

Vehicle position centers on the GSA Multiple Award Schedule, which carries 237 task orders valued at $39.9 million — the primary channel for delivery orders. The vendor also holds a single-award indefinite-delivery contract (FA930223D0002) valued at $749,000 with the Air Force Test Center through April 2028 for BOSS software licenses and annual product support; this vehicle anchors recurring delivery orders for software renewals and support at Edwards Air Force Base and other test facilities. Additional parent vehicles include three task orders under Indefinite Delivery Contract 47QFLA20D0022, three under Basic Ordering Agreement FA862021G4027, and two under Indefinite Delivery Contract FA850924D0003.

Subcontract footprint reflects integration into larger defense primes' tactical communications and aircraft manufacturing programs. Named sub-award primes include Lockheed Martin Corporation (Link 16 simulation software for Korea F-16 M6 upgrade, BOSS extended product support for aircraft integration), The Boeing Company (F-15 SCAT IV and F-15 flight test base support), Raytheon Company (Qatar Air Operations Center sustainment and upgrades), Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation (Combat Rescue Helicopter migration to SIMPLE interface protocol, product support), L3Harris Technologies (BIG SAFARI aircraft manufacturing, JAMMS MITD 1 electronic computer manufacturing), Sierra Nevada Company (MC-130J airborne mission networking kits and contractor logistics support), Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation (E-2C/E-2D international service and technical support), American Electronic Warfare Associates (Integrated Combat Environment support services), The Mitre Corporation (National Security Engineering Center services supporting Air Force BOSS programs), and J.F. Taylor, Inc. (documentation, manuals, training for Link 16 capable systems). Across these relationships, Curtiss-Wright delivers BOSS software, tactical data link capabilities, integration, and product support as a sub-award vendor supporting foreign military sales and domestic defense platform modernization.

Award concentration by NAICS code reflects the mixed hardware-software posture: Other Aircraft Parts and Auxiliary Equipment Manufacturing dominates at 252 awards, followed by Software Publishers (30 and 17 awards across two codes), Computer Systems Design Services (25 awards), and Custom Computer Programming Services (21 awards). PSC codes align with this hardware-software mix — Information Technology Software accounts for 97 awards, IT and Telecom Business Application Software perpetual licenses for 43 awards, and Miscellaneous Communication Equipment for 24 awards. Recent awards from May 2024 onward (roughly 82 awards in the source footprint) reveal sustained demand for annual BOSS software license renewals, product support plan renewals (Gold and Platinum), hardware kits and replacements, training delivery, software upgrades and enhancements, and integration support across Air Force test centers, tactical squadrons, logistics complexes, and Navy aviation warfare centers. The $106 million combined potential value across 440 awards with $104.5 million already obligated signals high cash-conversion velocity and strong incumbent customer retention, anchored by recurring support contracts tied to BOSS's embedded position in U.S. military tactical communications infrastructure.