Northrop Grumman has been given a $1.3 billion IDIQ contract for the Litening advanced targeting pod. Designed to improve both day and night attack capabilities, the AN/AAQ-28 pods provide pilots with advanced image processing for target identification and coordinate generation, a forward-looking infrared (FLIR) sensor, charge-coupled device television (CCD-TV) sensors, a laser spot tracker/range finder and infrared laser marker/designators. It is fully operational round the clock and in adverse weather conditions. Work is expected to be completed by the end of 2023.