Daily Archives: July 11, 2016

Thailand Bids For a Place on the Aerospace World Stage

FARNBOROUGH AIR SHOW

by Jennifer Meszaros – July 11, 2016, 5:00 AM

Thailand’s relatively low wages make it a logical choice for MRO.

In an attempt to duplicate the success of its automotive industry—the 12th largest in the world—Thailand is ramping up its push to become a full-service aerospace hub, and a major player in the region’s multi-billion-dollar aircraft maintenance and manufacturing industries. The country’s presence here at the Farnborough International Airshow falls under the remit of its Board of Investment (Hall 4 Stand A110).

Thailand may seem overly ambitious to some, but Peter Gille, director of operations and engineering at Triumph Aviation Services—Asia (TASA) remains bullish on the country’s growth prospects. TASA’s capabilities include repairing and overhauling auxiliary power units (APU), thrust reversers, composite structures, and engine and airframe accessories.

“I am personally convinced that Thailand can become a full-service aerospace hub,” Gille told AIN. “This is, in fact, what I am personally trying to contribute to.”

Dozens of industry leaders agree. Over the past two decades, Thailand has attracted significant investment from several U.S. companies such as Triumph, Honeywell, General Electric and Chromalloy, along with French tire manufacturer Michelin and German manufacturer Leistritz. According to Thailand’s Board of Investment (BOI), 24 companies are actively involved in aircraft part manufacturing while 12 companies perform maintenance and repair on aircraft and parts.

Thailand’s not-so-secret weapon lies in its strategic location, low labor costs, expanding network of free trade agreements and generous incentive packages. Situated in the heart of Southeast Asia, the country offers convenient trade with China, India and so-called Asean countries (Those in the Association of South East Asian Nations). Moreover, Thailand’s two international deep-sea ports on the eastern seaboard enable suppliers to tap into global markets.

“Thailand is centrally located and very pro-business,” said Ronald Vuz, president of Triumph Structures Thailand—a manufacturer of aerospace composite structures. “We are in a free trade zone. This is a big part of the reason why we bought this facility. The country also has strong regulations and policies along with great logistics. It is very easy to get product in and out.”

Speaking to AIN last month, Segsarn Trai-Ukos, country director for Michelin, said the country’s geographical advantage prompted the company to switch its base of operations. “We recently moved our headquarters from Singapore to Thailand. We wanted to be closer to our customers and closer to our factories,” he said. “For us, this was a strategic decision.”

Despite uncertainties over Thai politics, the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business 2016 report places Thailand as the second-ranked emerging economy in Southeast Asia in which to do business and the 49th in the world. Aerospace companies say they have no complaints when it comes to serving overseas customers.

Gerton van den Oetelaar, engineering director of Chromalloy Thailand, said, “95 percent of our work is engine component maintenance. On average, we have 82 to 100 customers worldwide. Having agreements with BOImakes us very competitive.”

The agreements that van den Oetelaar allude to are laid out in well-defined investment policies that include a string of fiscal and non-fiscal incentives that range from corporate tax exemptions to assistance with customs, work permits and product sourcing. Available incentives include an exemption of import duties on machinery, no export requirements, an eight-year corporate income tax exemption and permission to own land.

“Airlines often want their parts in a very short time,” van den Oetelaar told AIN. “We ship anywhere in the world in two, three days, max. This is because we have priority clearance from BOI to import and export.”

Thailand’s generous investment packages do not end there. Recognizing the importance of infrastructure and the need for greater integration between core industries, Ajarin Pattanapanchai, deputy security general of BOI, told AIN that a policy launched early last year aims to ramp up further investment in aerospace activities.

Super Cluster

Dubbed the Super-Cluster initiative, the program allows future companies to be eligible for eight-year corporate tax exemptions and an additional five-year reduction of 50 percent, provided they are in the designated cluster areas.

For industries with significant importance, Pattanapanchai said that the Ministry of Finance will consider granting 10 to 15 years’ corporate income tax exemption, personal income tax exemption for renowned specialists and matching grants to support investors in high-value-added activities such as training and research and development (R&D).

In order to be eligible, companies must collaborate with academic or research institutes to improve the level of human resources and technology. “In order to accelerate investment, projects need to apply this year and generate revenue in 2017. But for big projects, the BOI may consider a time frame on a case by case basis,” Pattanapanchai said.

Having a broad-based game plan that includes cooperation between institutions, the government and the private sector have long been a part of Thailand’s DNA in building up competitive manufacturing industries. Today, aerospace companies benefit from the country’s advanced auto manufacturing and electronics industries.

“Many of our Thai employees came from the automotive industry,” said Vuz. “While we provide training, the automotive industry has paved the way for people to enter aerospace.”

Arnd Balzereit-Kelter, managing director of Leistritz, agrees. “Thailand has experienced a slowdown in the automotive industry. So we are leveraging off this and hiring people from the sector.” Leistritz’s Thai division is a global supplier of components for the forging of compressor blades for aero engines such as the International Aero Engines V2500, Pratt & Whitney PW1000G (with P&W partner MTU), and Rolls-Royce Trent 700, 900 and 1000.

Compared to neighboring countries like Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos, Thailand has more skilled labor that companies can tap into. According to Gille, the country has civil engineering schools and two main universities that offer aerospace programs

“I am very impressed with the level of education,” Gille told AIN, “Fifty percent of our staff have bachelor or master degrees, and two employees have PhDs. They know what they are doing.”

Saying this, TASA and other aerospace companies recognize the need to invest in new capabilities, as manufacturers deliver next generation aircraft and engines with new technology. To remain competitive, companies across the sector offer employees in-house and overseas training.

“We have Thai people training Thais, and English-speakers training Thais to train other Thai people,” Vuz said. “Thais can do the work. They just need more experience and a chance to broaden their capabilities.”

Making sure there is a sufficient knowledge-based workforce to accommodate MRO growth, van den Oetelaar said Chromalloy offers roughly 200 training courses per year in areas such as machining and welding. The company currently employs more than 500 people and serves all the major airlines in the world.

“Quality is not an argument, it’s a standard,” he said. “You have to comply with regulatory requirements in this field.”

Aerospace companies are not only leveraging Thailand’s burgeoning talent base, they are also taking advantage of low labor costs. With aerospace work becoming more intensive and more costly, van den Oetelaar said it makes sense to be based in a country with relatively low wages.

“Asia is a growth region. There is going to be more maintenance required,” he said. “We focus on doing everything in house, which makes us very efficient and low-cost.”

While Thai employees may earn a lower salary compared to their Western peers, the cost of living and doing business in Thailand is substantially less.

“People go to India because the market is growing but it’s expensive with poor infrastructure. The cost of borrowing capital is very high compared to Thailand,” said Ketan Pole, chief executive officer of C.C.S. Advance Tech—a manufacturer of piece parts for Tier 1 and Tier 2 customers of Boeing, Airbus, Rolls-Royce and UTAS.

Pole told AIN that another benefit to Thailand is a competitive corporate income tax rate at 20 percent.

“In Southeast Asia, Thailand has advantages, “he said. “It makes sense to be here.”

@ainonline.com

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Scroll down for more details on Thai Aerospace Industry

Thailand Investment Review, June 2016 from Thailand Board of Investment North America

Thailand: An ASEAN Hub, A World of Opportunities from Thailand Board of Investment North America

Why Thailand from Thailand Board of Investment North America

Rooivalk Attack Helicopter, South Africa

Airbus, Denel sign MoU for Rooivalk upgrade: Here

Excerpt

Airbus Helicopters has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Denel Aviation to cooperate on modernising the current fleet of 11 Rooivalk Mk1 attack helicopter in service with the South African Air Force.

Announced on September 15 at the Africa Aerospace and Defence (AAD) exhibition being held at Air Force Base Waterkloof, South Africa, the Rooivalk Mk1.1 modernisation program will focus on improving reliability and updating ageing sighting and weapon systems, improving payload and survivability.

Rooivalk attack helicopter cockpit

Africa Travel Channel

The cockpits are in stepped tandem configuration. The weapon systems officer (WSO) is seated in the front cockpit and the pilot is seated in the cockpit above and behind the WSO. The cockpits, which are fitted with crashworthy seats and are armour-protected, are equipped with hands-on collective And stick (HOCAS) controls.

Rear seat

Front seat

A Thales Avionics TopOwl helmet-mounted sight display (HMSD) provides the crew with a head-up display of information for nap-of-the-earth flight (NOE). TopOwl incorporates an integrated measurement system for directing an articulated weapon such as the cannon, or air-to-air missile seeker heads. It has an integrated Gen IV image intensifier and FLIR capability and provides transition from day to night use at the push of a button.

Le Casque TopOwl MKII / TIGRE / GAMSTAT VALENCE

The Rooivalk has a crash-resistant structure and is designed for stealth with low radar, visual, infrared and acoustic signatures.

Weapons

The Rooivalk carries a comprehensive range of weaponry selected for the mission requirement, ranging from anti-armour and anti-helicopter missions to ground suppression and ferry missions. The aircraft can engage multiple targets at short and long range, utilising the nose-mounted cannon and a range of underwing-mounted munitions.

The 20mm, F2 dual-feed, gas-operated cannon fires high-speed (1,100m/s) ammunition at a firing rate of 740 rounds a minute. Two ammunition bins hold up to 700 rounds of ready-to-fire ammunition. The slew rate of the cannon is 90° a second. The cannon is chin-mounted on the helicopter.

Giat Industries 20 mm M693 (F2)

The Giat Industries 20 mm M693 (F2) is a dual feed cannon which fires standard 20 x 139 mm ammunition.

It is gas operated and the firing mode can be selected for single shots, bursts or safe. The gas system operates via two vents, one on each side of the barrel, through which the propellant gases can push against two pistons. The gun is locked by two swinging locking devices which act as struts between the gun body and the gun block. On firing, the two gas pistons are driven to the rear, moving the struts backwards and so allowing the breech block to move to the rear. In this way all the firing forces are developed along the barrel centreline to keep accuracy constant.

denellandsystems.co.za

The M693 has three main assemblies: the basic gun or recoil mass; the cradle; and the fire-control unit. The basic gun includes a 7° rifled barrel made of a special nitrided steel and fitted with a muzzle brake. The feed operates on a ratchet and pawl mechanism rotating two side sprockets which can feed ammunition into the gun from both sides, ejecting the spent cases from the same side as the feed in use. This system allows two types of ammunition to be fed into the gun. A further control switch can select the ammunition feed to be used. The linked rounds are fed into the gun from flexible chutes.

The M693 can be fitted with an electric recocking device including a system to indicate the end of its operation, or a hydraulic recocking device.

Specifications:
Property	Value
Main weapon caliber (mm)	20
Length (mm)	2600
Barrel length (calibres)	100
Recoil stroke (mm)	60
Height (mm)	260
Weight (kg)	71
Rate of fire (rds/min)	900

Giat Industries 20 mm M693 (F2) data army-guide.com

The Rooivalk was to be armed with the Mokopa long-range anti-armour missile developed by the Kentron Division of Denel. Mokopa has a semi-active laser seeker head and is equipped with a tandem warhead. Range is over 8.5km. Rooivalk can also fire Hellfire or HOT 3 missiles.

Mokopa anti-armour missile

Mokopa is a state-of-the-art, long-range, precision-guided, anti-armour missile. It may, however, be used effectively against other high-value ground, air or naval targets from a variety of launch platforms such as land vehicles, shore battery installations, naval vessels and fixed-wing aircraft.

Image @wieng.kr

The modular design of the missile allows for different warheads (e.g. penetration, fragmentation or anti-armour), optimized for the type of target. Furthermore, the modularity of the missile system facilitates pre-planned upgrades, such as mmW and IIRseekers, ensuring a continued presence in the market.

System Operation (SAL Version)

Prior to launch, target information must be supplied via the on-board sighting system or from an external source. After launch, the missile flies towards the target area, using the selected trajectory and fly-out method. During the terminal phase, the target must be illuminated by the on-board sighting system or a remote designator.

System Description

The Mokopa system consists of the following major components:

178 mm missile
Launcher (two or four missiles)
Support equipment

Technical Data

Missile mass : 49,8 kg
Missile diameter : 178 mm
Missile length : 1 995 mm
Seeker : Semi-active laser homing
Warhead : Tandem HEAT
Penetration : > 1 350 mm RHA
Range : 10 000 m

Data wieng.kr

Rooivalk can carry four air-to-air missiles such as the Denel Aerospace Systems V3C Darter or MBDA (formerly Matra BAe Dynamics) Mistral.

V3C Darter AAM

A greatly improved version of the short-range V3B AAM, it was cleared for use with the Mirage III, Mirage F1 and Cheetah aircraft. The missile is linked to the helmet-mounted acquisition system which allows the pilot to lock the missiles seeker head onto the target well outside his aircraft’s axis. It is comparable to the AIM-9L Sidewinder. Using both contact and laser proximity fuses, launch velocity is the aircraft’s speed plus 600m/s. It can be fired against targets within 15 degrees of the sun, and in look-down mode.

Produced from 1986, the Darter has a larger-diameter fuselage when compared to the V3B, gimble limits were increased to 55 degrees and incorporated shorter reaction times and a laser fuse. Lead bias was optimised from 20 to 160 degrees by using a colour guidance system to distinguish between aircraft and decoy flares. The Bush War ended before it entered service in 1990, but was still used by the Impala Mk II. Further development of the Kenron V3C ceased in favour of the larger U-Darter.

Weapon Stats:

Speed: Mach 2

Range: 0.3-10 km, 0.2-6.2 miles

Length: 2.75 m, 9.02 ft

Diameter: 15.7 cm, 6.18 ft

Weight: 89 kg, 196 lb

Explosives: 16 kg (35.3 lb) Torpex 2A Fragmentation (Tungsten cube)

Propulsion: Double-base solid-propellant rocket

Data saairforce.co.za

MBDA mistral air-to-air missiles

The MBDA Mistral is a very short-range air defence missile system capable of intercepting close to the ground-flying helicopters and fighter aircraft.

The Atam system is comprised of two launching ramps with two missiles each, i.e. four ready-to-fire missiles. It is capable of intercepting helicopters as well as fighter aircraft and can be fired from altitudes of up to 15,000 ft and at speeds of up to 200 knots.

Very simple to use (Fire and Forget missile) and easy to maintain, the system can be operated in the whole flight envelope of the carrier helicopter.

The warheads are equipped with a contact fuse, a laser proximity fuse and a time delay self destruct device. Guidance is by passive infra-red homing using an indium arsenide detector array operating in the 3 to 5 micron waveband. The guidance system is capable of trajectory-shaping and has a self-spinning airframe for improved accuracy. The warhead can be detonated either by impact or by an active laser proximity fuse.

Weapon Stats:

Speed: Mach 2.5

Range: 0.5-6 km, 0.3-3.7 miles

Length: 1.86 m, 6.1 ft

Diameter: 90 cm, 35.4 ft

Weight: 18.7 kg, 41.2 lb

Propulsion: Solid rocket booster

Data saairforce.co.za

Denel AH-2 Rooivalk Attack Helicopters 2

Hellfire missile

The US-made AGM-114 Hellfire Anti-Tank Guided Missile (ATGM) is one of the most common and important heliborne weapons of the Western Bloc. Designed to serve as an equalizer against superior numbers of Warsaw Pact tanks at the height of the Cold War, this missile continues to find a place in new missions and battles that were largely discounted in its infancy.

Development of this weapon began in 1974, as a US Army program. In its conceptual phase, the AGM-114 was known as the “HELFIRE”, a portmanteau of “HELicopter launched FIRE and forget”. The HELFIRE by 1978 had become a joint program US Marine Corp as well; the Marines had a requirement for essentially the same type of weapon, and Congress directed that they co-develop the HELFIRE. Test firings began later that same year, with operational testing was reportedly completed in 1981, and the AGM-114 achieved initial operational capability with the US Army in 1985.

At some point before it was approved for production in 1982 the AGM-114 HELFIRE was inevitably renamed the “Hellfire”, and like most modern US weapons, its origins are a tangled web of ties between legions of contractors and subcontractors. It was initially a proprietary Rockwell product, but a Martin Marietta seeker head was integrated into the design by the time its live-fire testing began. The motors were all manufactured by Thikliol, but are now ATK products. The primary contractor today for all models except the AGM-114L is Hellfire Systems LLC, a joint venture of Lockheed Martin and Boeing. The AGM-114L is currently produced by Longbow LLC, a joint venture of Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman. Thus, for all intents and purposes, the Hellfire is essentially a Lockheed product.

All variants to date, with the exception of the AGM-114L, employ semi-active laser guidance. The missile homes-in on a laser spot produced by a laser designator. The aircraft employing the Hellfire usually have their own laser designator, but the target can be “lased” by another aircraft, a fighting vehicle, personnel with a man-portable designator, and so on.

The Hellfire is most famously associated with the AH-64 Apache attack helicopter, but since its introduction has been integrated into a multitude of different launch platforms, including fixed-wing aircraft. It has also been successfully integrated into ground-based and naval launch platforms, though to date none of these have entered production. The problem with the Hellfire in a ground-based application is likely its significant mass and unit cost; a BGM-71C TOW IIA, for example, is half the weight and cost of the AGM-114L Hellfire. A new generation of more compact ATGMs, such as the 9M133 Kornet and FGM-148 Javelin, have further eroded the viability of ground-launched Hellfires. The limitations of the Hellfire for marine use are much simpler, in that it is extremely lacking in range and power compared to missiles such as the AGM-119 Penguin or RGM-84 Harpoon.

It is also possible for the Hellfire to engage helicopters and slow fixed-wing aircraft, though its guidance, warhead, and flight profile obviously make it less than ideal for this purpose (hence, why combat helicopters are often seen carrying missiles like the AIM-92 Stinger and AIM-9 Sidewinder). The only documented case of the Hellfire shooting-down an aircraft was on May 24th 2001, when an IDF AH-64 Apache shot-down a civilian Cessna 152 intruding into restricted airspace (which unfortunately stemmed from the inexperience of the civilian pilot, rather than hostile intent).

Entered service	1985
Armor penetration	~ 800 mm
Range of fire	7 000 – 9 000 m
Missile weight	45.4 – 49 kg
Missile length	1.63 – 1.8 m
Missile diameter	0.18 m
Fin span	0.33 m
Warhead type	HEAT, various (see below)
Warhead weight	8 or 9 kg
Guidance	Semi active laser of active radar

Data military-today.com

HOT 3 missiles

The HOT is an anti-tank missile of French/German origin. It was developed in the early and mid 1970s to replace the SS.11 missile. The name HOT stands for Haut subsonique, Optiquement téléguidé, Tiré d’un tube, this translates to high subsonic, optically guided, tube launched. The performance is comparable to the American TOW missile and Soviet Konkurs (AT-5) missile

The HOT is a powerful anti-tank missile with good penetration characteristics. The HOT-1 HEAT warhead penetrates 800 mm RHA, the HOT-2 does 900 mm and the tandem HEAT warhead on the HOT-3 penetrates 1.250 mm behind ERA. It is also effective against bunkers and light vehicles, but of limited use against infantry in the open. The maximum range is 4 km and the flight speed is about 850 km/h. The SACLOS guidance results in good accuracy, even against moving targets.

HOT-1: Original HOT missile produced since 1978. Fitted with 136mm diameter shaped charge HEAT warhead.
HOT-2: Improved HOT-1 introduced in 1985. Has a 150mm diameter warhead for increased penetration. The missile body is lighter to compensate for the increased weight.
HOT-2MP: Multi Purpose version of HOT-2 introduced in 1986. Fitted with penetrating blast fragmentation warhead for use against buildings, fortified positions and all vehicles except tanks.
HOT-3: Final version introduced in 1993 and previously called HOT-2T. Has a tandem shaped charge HEAT warhead for much increased penetration and longer guidance wire. Data weaponsystems.net

The V3C Darter has an infrared seeker and a helmet-mounted sight for target designation. The Mistral, which has been selected by the South African Air Force, has an infrared seeker and range of up to 6km.

aircraftnut.blogspot.com

Rooivalk is equipped to fire 70mm folding-fin aerial rockets (FFAR), from the company Forges de Zeebrugge of Belgium, with a range of warheads, selectable according to the type of targets being engaged.

FZ 90 70mm FFAR

Developed by Forges de Zeebrugge of Belgium from a licence-built US-designed Folding Fin Aircraft Rocket (FFAR). In mid-1990s announced development of Wraparound Fin Air Rocket (WAFAR) FZ 90, designed primarily for helicopters. Denel says these were found superior to the old 68mm SNEB’s.

In 1997, TDA announced that the TDA/FZ 70 mm rocket system consisting of the FZ 90 rocket motor, warheads and M159 rocket launcher had been selected for integration on the South African Rooivalk helicopter.

Pilot’s Post PTY Ltd

M159 rocket launcher

Metallic rocket launcher

M159 is an aluminum high-drag, straight cylindrical 19-tube reusable launcher designed for helicopter use. The rocket launcher M159 is equipped with removable universal dual purpose FZ125 detent mechanisms enabling to fire FFAR and WA rockets. Source fz.be

Warheads are selectable according to the type of targets being engaged.

Explosive types:

HEAT; HE general purpose; MPSM/HE anti-armour/anti-personnel submunition; AMV multidart; target marking; smoke; chaff; illumination

Used on:

Rooivalk (x 19 per pod)

Data saairforce.co.za

Rooivalk electronic warfare suite

The Rooivalk’s electronic warfare suite is the fully integrated helicopter electronic warfare self-protection suite (HEWSPS), incorporating radar warning, laser warning and countermeasures dispensing system. The system is flight-line programmable and in-flight adaptable to match the threat library with the mission’s area of operation.

The radar warner features low-effective radiated power (ERP) / pulse Doppler radar detection beyond radar detection range, ultra broadband frequency coverage, high pulse density handling and internal instantaneous frequency measurement.

The laser warner provides broadband laser frequency coverage to detect and display rangefinding, designating and missile guidance laser threats.

The countermeasures dispensing system, which is operated in manual, semi-automatic or fully automatic mode, is charged with chaff and flare cartridges.

Fire control and observation

Target detection, acquisition and tracking are carried out using the nose-mounted stabilised sight, TDATS. The TDATS sight is equipped with a low-level television sensor, Forward-looking infrared (FLIR), autotracker, laser rangefinder and laser designator.

Navigation and communications

The Rooivalk is equipped with an advanced navigation suite including Doppler radar velocity sensor, Thales Avionics eight-channel global positioning system, heading sensor unit and an air data unit.

The communications suite consists of two VHF/UHF transceivers with FM, AM and digital speech processing, one HF radio with frequency hopping and secure voice and data channels, and an IFF transponder

Data military-today.com

Entered service	1999
Crew	2 men
*Dimensions and weight*
Length	18.73 m
Main rotor diameter	15.58 m
Height	5.19 m
Weight (empty)	5.9 t
Weight (maximum take off)	8.7 t
*Engines and performance*
Engines	2 x Atlas Topaz turboshaft engines
Engine power	2 x 2 000 hp
Maximum cruising speed	309 km/h
Range	940 km
*Armament*
Cannon	1 x 20-mm Armscor cannon
Missiles	4 x four-round launchers for TOW or Denel ZT-6 Mokopa anti-tank missiles, provision for air-to-air missiles
Other	launchers with 70-mm unoperated rockets in place of the missiles

airwar.ru

Main material source army-technology.com

Updated Nov 11, 2019

Raytheon delivered its AN/SPY-6(V) Air and Missile Defense Radar array to US Navy’s Pacific Missile Range Facility in Hawaii

Rapid Fire | Monday, July 11, 2016, 00:59 UTC

Raytheon has delivered its AN/SPY-6(V) Air and Missile Defense Radar array to the US Navy’s Pacific Missile Range Facility in Hawaii ahead of the first radar light-off in early July . According to Tad Dickenson, AMDR program director, the array was the last component to ship and all other components, including the back-end processing equipment, were delivered earlier and already integrated at the range.

-END-

US Navy all set for AN/SPY-6(V) radar array tests

Image @shephardmedia.com

Posted on July 7, 2016

American defense contractor Raytheon informed that it has delivered the first AN/SPY-6(V) air and missile defense radar array to the U.S. Navy’s Pacific Missile Range Facility in Hawaii ahead of schedule.

The company said the array was installed according to plan, in preparation for first radar light-off in early July. SPY-6(V) is the next-generation integrated air and ballistic missile defense radar for the U.S. Navy, filling a capability gap for the surface fleet.

The delivery and installation of the AN/SPY-6 radar at the Advanced Radar Development Evaluation Laboratory (ARDEL) followed the successful completion of Near Field Range testing in Sudbury, Massachusetts in late May, and marks the beginning of the Air and Missile Defense Radar (AMDR) program’s next phase of execution that includes live test campaigns at PMRF — involving air and surface targets as well as integrated air and missile defense (IAMD) flight tests.

In less than 30 months, the SPY-6(V) array completed design, fabrication and initial testing. Soon to transition to low rate initial production, SPY-6(V) remains on track for delivery in 2019 for the first DDG 51 Flight III destroyer.

“Several months of testing at our near-field range facility, where the array completed characterization and calibration, have proven the system ready for live target tracking,” said Raytheon’s Tad Dickenson, AMDR program director. “The array was the last component to ship. With all other components, including the back-end processing equipment, delivered earlier and already integrated at the range, AMDR will be up and running in short order.”

“The extensive testing to date has demonstrated good compliance to the radar’s key technical performance parameters,” said U.S. Navy Captain Seiko Okano, major program manager, Above Water Sensors (IWS 2.0). “The technologies are proven mature and ready for testing in the far-field range, against live targets, to verify and validate the radar’s exceptional capabilities.”

As Raytheon eplains, the SPY-6(V) is the first scalable radar, built with RMAs – radar building blocks. Each RMA, roughly 2′ x 2′ x 2′ in size, is a standalone radar that can be grouped to build any size radar aperture, from a single RMA to configurations larger than currently fielded radars.

All cooling, power, command logic and software are scalable, allowing for new instantiations without significant radar development costs.

Providing greater capability – in range, sensitivity and discrimination accuracy – than currently deployed radars, SPY-6(V) increases battlespace, situational awareness and reaction time to effectively counter current and future threats.

The inherent scalability could allow for new instantiations, such as back-fit on existing DDG 51 destroyers and installation on aircraft carriers, amphibious warfare ships, frigates, Littoral Combat Ship and DDG 1000 classes, without significant new radar development costs, Raytheon said.

When it comes to the DDG 51 Flight III destroyer, however, the SPY-6(V) AMDR will feature 37 RMAs – which is equivalent to SPY-1D(V) +15 dB meaning SPY-6 can see a target of half the size at twice the distance of today’s radar while 4 array faces will provide full-time, 360° situational awareness.

The video below illustrates the radar’s scalability and provides a visual of how it all should work.

Source navaltoday.com

The Highly Capable, Truly Scalable Radar

The Air and Missile Defense Radar – AN/SPY-6(V) – is the Navy’s next generation integrated air and missile defense radar. It is advancing through development and on track for the DDG-51 Flight III destroyer.

The radar significantly enhances the ships’ ability to detect air and surface targets as well as the ever-proliferating ballistic missile threats.

AMDR provides greater detection ranges, increased discrimination accuracy, higher reliability and sustainability, and lower total ownership cost as well as a host of other advantages when compared to the current AN/SPY-1D(V) radar onboard today’s destroyers.

The system is built with individual ‘building blocks’ called Radar Modular Assemblies. Each RMA is a self-contained radar in a 2’x2’x2’ box. These individual radar RMAs can stack together to form any size array to fit the mission requirements of any ship, making AMDR the Navy’s first truly scalable radar.

For the DDG 51 Flight III destroyer, the SPY-6(V) AMDR will feature:

37 RMAs – which is equivalent to SPY-1D(V) +15 dB
Meaning, SPY-6 can see a target of half the size at twice the distance of today’s radar
4 array faces to provide full-time, 360° situational awareness
Each face is 14’ x 14’ – which is roughly the same dimension as today’s SPY-1D(V) radar

AMDR Advantages

Scalable to suit any size aperture or mission requirement
Over 30 times more sensitive than AN/SPY-1D(V) in the Flight III configuration
Designed to counter large and complex raids
Adaptive digital beamforming and radar signal/data processing functionality provides exceptional capability in adverse conditions, such as high-clutter and jamming environments. It is also reprogrammable to adapt to new missions or emerging threats.
All cooling, power, command logic and software are scalable

RELIABILITY AND AFFORDABILITY

Designed for high availability and reliability, AMDR provides exceptional capability and performance compared to SPY-1 – and at a comparable price and significantly lower total ownership cost.

AMDR’s performance and reliability are a direct result of more than 10 years of investment in core technologies, leveraging development, testing and production of high-powered Gallium Nitride (GaN) semiconductors, distributed receiver exciters, and adaptive digital beamforming. AMDR’s GaN components cost 34% less than Gallium Arsenide alternatives, deliver higher power density and efficiency, and have demonstrated meantime between failures at an impressive 100 million hours.

AMDR has a fully programmable, back-end radar controller built out of commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) x86 processors. This programmability allows the system to adapt to emerging threats. The commercial nature of the x86 processors simplifies obsolescence replacement – as opposed to costly technical refresh/upgrades and associated downtime – savings that lower radar sustainment costs over each ship’s service life.

AMDR has an extremely high predicted operational availability due to the reliable GaN transmit/receive modules, the low mean-time-to-repair rate, and a very low number of Line Replaceable Units. Designed for maintainability, standard LRU replacement in the RMA can be accomplished in under six minutes – requiring only two tools.

This new S-band radar will be coupled with:

X-band radar – a horizon-search radar based on existing technology
The Radar Suite Controller (RSC) – a new component to manage radar resources and integrate with the ship’s combat management system

Source raytheon.com

Facts

Mobility	Sea-based and is highly mobile
Role	Planned to replace AN/SPY-1 as the primary radar for the Aegis Combat System
Deployment	Scheduled to be deployed on DDG-51 Flight III destroyers upon development[i]
Frequency	S-band (X-band for corresponding horizon-search AN/SPQ-9B radar)
Producer	Raytheon

Source missiledefenseadvocacy.org

Range

General data:
Type: Radar	Altitude Max: 1005840 m
Range Max: 463 km	Altitude Min: 0 m
Range Min: 1.1 km	Generation: Early 2020s

Properties: Identification Friend or Foe (IFF) [Side Info], Non-Coperative Target Recognition (NCTR) – Jet Engine Modulation [Class Info], Continous Tracking Capability [Phased Array Radar], Track While Scan (TWS), Moving Target Indicator (MTI), Pulse Doppler Radar (Full LDSD Capability), Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA)