MASS SETS NEW SURVEILLANCE STANDARD FOR MILITARY FLIGHT

Unrestricted Formation and Rendezvous Capability Added To TCAS 2000

Contact:
Steve Henden
Manager, Communications
ACSS, an L-3 Communications & Thales Company
623-445-7021

FARNBOROUGH, July 24, 2002 – ACSS, an L-3 Communications & Thales Company, unveils a new military surveillance product that provides a higher degree of situational awareness for military flight operations. The MASS (Military Airborne Surveillance System) utilizes the same technology developed by ACSS for commercial aircraft, adding the unique military capabilities of rendezvous and formation station keeping, as well as ACSS’ proprietary “Encroachment Alert” function.

The MASS technology was developed as an enhancement for the TCAS 2000. The TCAS functionality is identical to the TCAS 2000 system flying in over 5,000 commercial and military aircraft around the world. The system was successfully demonstrated in May using a Citation V business jet and a United States Air Force Boeing 707 simulating an actual formation flight.

During formation flight, the system works with the Mode S-IFF (identification friend or foe) data link transponder to identify and distinguish between cooperative member and non-member aircraft. It support unrestricted formation and rendezvous operations and can be installed on aircraft equipped with the ACSS TCAS 2000 and Mode S-IFF with a simple software upgrade. MASS complies with ATC guidelines to work in both military and civil airspace, providing TCAS/ACAS II operations during non-military flights.

“This is the next step in military airborne surveillance in the CNS/ATM (Communications,
Navigation, Surveillance/Air Traffic Management) infrastructure,” said Rich Baldwin, ACSS vice president of Military Programs. “ACSS is proud to bring this new level of situational awareness to military flight operations.”

ACSS will hold a technical briefing on the MASS in the Media Centre’s Hatfield Room at the Farnborough Air Show, Farnborough, England, on July 24 at 9AM BST.

ACSS (Aviation Communication & Surveillance Systems), an L-3 Communications & Thales Company, is a leader in safety avionics systems. ACSS products include the TCAS 2000 and TCAS 1500 traffic alert and collision avoidance systems, a family of Mode S transponders, the T²CAS™, a combined traffic and terrain collision avoidance system, and MASS, an enhanced TCAS system for military operations. More than 8,000 units of ACSS’s TCAS products are operating in commercial, corporate and military aircraft. To learn more about ACSS, please visit the company's web site at www.L-3com.com/acss.

Headquartered in Velizy (France), Thales Avionics, a wholly owned subsidiary of Thales, is the European leader and world-renowned partner in avionics and cabin electronics and a world leader in professional electronics for civil and defense markets. To learn more about Thales Avionics, please visit the company's web site at www.thales-avionics.com.

Headquartered in New York City, L-3 Communications is a leading merchant supplier of secure communications systems and products, avionics and ocean products, training products, microwave components and telemetry, instrumentation, space and wireless products. Its customers include the Department of Defense, selected US government intelligence agencies, aerospace prime contractors and commercial telecommunications and wireless customers. To learn more about L-3 Communications, please visit the company's web site at www.L-3Com.com.

Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: Except for historical information contained herein, the matters set forth in this news release are forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements set forth above involve a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from any such statement, including the risks and uncertainties discussed in the company's Safe Harbor Compliance Statement for Forward-looking Statements included in the company's recent filings, including Forms 10-K and 10-Q, with the Securities and Exchange Commission.