US defense project to use IBM machines

ARMONK, New York: International Business Machines Corp. on Monday said that 66 of its "Regatta" business computers will be used in the U.S. Department of Defense's national missile defense program. The program is part of the department's ground-based mid-course defense program, which aims to use ground-based rockets to shoot down incoming missiles. Congress recently authorized more than $2.5 billion for the program and related testing.

IBM declined to disclose financial terms of the deal. The computers that the defense department will use list for $800,000 to $10 million a piece. IBM said that Boeing Co., which is the prime contractor for the program, ordered the computers, which are based on IBM microchips and which run on IBM's version of the popular Unix operating system. It will use twenty of the computers to run sophisticated test and simulations.

The rest of the systems were ordered by TRW Inc., another government defense contractor, and will be used for battle management command and control.

© Reuters