armada international august-september 2015

August/September 2015Issue 4/2015

The TrusTed source for defence analysis since 1976

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03armada INTERNATIONAL 4/2015

Contents4/2015

INTERNATIONAL

The TrusTed source for defence analysis since 1976

www.armadainternational.com

14

Our new column sees Luca Peruzzi

take the temperature of the Royal Navy’s Global Combat Ship

initiative.

Programme FocusBRitaNNia COOLS

the WaveS

22aIr-To-grouND WeaPoNs LOve aNd ROCketSroy Braybrook examines some recent evolutions in air-to-ground weapons technology to improve precision and reduce collateral damage.

30morTars MORtaRS ON the MOveThomas Newdick examines the veritable smorgasbord of tracked and wheeled 120mm mortars currently available.

38marITIme Sea ChaNGecomparatively small naval vessels are benefiting from increasingly advanced naval surveillance radars, Thomas Withington reports.

44eLecTroNIc WarFare aRMS RaCeanti-radiation missiles (arms) are undergoing some important developments, Thomas Withington reports.

comPeNDIum suPPLemeNTthe UNiveRSaL SOLdieRarmada’s ever-popular modern soldier equipment compendium returns with andrew White examining relevant programmes and technologies around the world.

08oPeraTIoNaL Focus

UP iN the aiR

in our new column, Fred Shepherd

takes stock of the one year old United States-led anti-iSiS

air campaign.

50suBmarINe seNsors dOWN PeRiSCOPe!Luca Peruzzi explains the modernisation efforts ongoing to improve the capabilities of submarine periscopes.

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Armada 216x276.indd 1 7/17/15 9:00 AM

04 armada INTERNATIONAL 4/2015

ON THE COVER: A Royal Netherlands Air Force Lockheed Martin F-16AM Fighting Falcon breaks away from a tanker after being refueled. The Netherlands has provided eight F-16AMs to assist US-led anti-ISIS efforts in Iraq, as discussed in this issue’s ‘Up in the Air’ article © USAF

Volume 39, Issue No. 4, August/September 2015

armada INTERNATIONALis published bi-monthly by Media Transasia Ltd.Copyright 2012 by Media Transasia Ltd.Publishing Office: Media Transasia Ltd.,1603, 16/F, Island Place Tower, 510 King’s Road, Hong Kong

Editor: Thomas Withington

Chairman: J.S. UberoiPresident: Egasith ChotpakditrakulChief Financial Officer: Gaurav KumarGeneral Manager International Marketing: Vishal MehtaManager Marketing: Jakhongir DjalmetovSales & Marketing Coordinator: Wajiraprakan PunyajaiEditorial Coordinator: Sumana SumanakulArt Director: James NvathornGraphic Designer: Khakanaa SuwannawongProduction Manager: Kanda ThanakornwongskulGroup Circulation Manager: Porames Chinwongs

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Annual subscription rates:Europe: CHF 222 (including postage)Rest of the World: USD 222 (including postage)Controlled circulation: 25,029 (average per issue)

certified by ABC Hong Kong, for the period1st January 2014 to 31st December 2014.

Printed by Media Transasia Ltd., 75/8, 14th Floor, Ocean Tower II, Soi Sukhumvit 19, Sukhumvit Road, Bangkok 10110, Thailand.Tel: 66 (0)-2204 2370, Fax: 66 (0)-2204 2390 -1Subscription Information: Readers should contact the following address: Subscription Department, Media Transasia Ltd., 75/8, 14th Floor, Ocean Tower II, Soi Sukhumvit 19, Sukhumvit Road, Bangkok 10110, Thailand.Tel +66 2204 2370 Fax: +66 2204 2387 Email: [email protected]

armadainternational.com

3M Pelter 21, 22, 23

Airbus 13

Airbus Defence and Space 40, 52, 54

Almaz-Antey 46

AM General 33

ARA Group 23

ATK 11

AugustaWestland 18, 19, 26, 28

BAE Systems 14, 15, 15, 16, 16, 17

Bell 11, 25, 26

Bell Boeing 11

Beretta 13, 14

Boeing 08, 10, 11, 12, 13, 19, 24, 46

Boeing-Institu 19

Breguet 12

CEA Technologies 41

Chengdu Aircraft Corporation 49

China Precision Machinery 46

Chungshan Institute 49

Colt 10, 12, 19, 20

Daewoo Shipbuilding 54

Dassault 12, 49

DCNS 54

DEFTECH 32

DRS Technologies 20

Elbit Systems 26, 33

Eurofighter Typhoon 13

Exelis 43

Fairchild Republic 10, 12

FN Herstal 13

FNSS 32

I INDEX TO MANUFACTURERSCompanies mentioned in this issue. Where there are multiple references to a company in an articles, only the first occurrence and subsequent photographs are listed below:

General Atomics 11

General Dynamics 10, 19, 21, 22, 24

General Electric 19

Glock 13, 20

Harris Corporation 17, 18, 22, 23

Heckler & Koch 03, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15

Huta Stalowa Wola 34

International Golden Group 35

Invisio 21

Israel Aerospace Industries 40, 48

Iveco 32

Kelvin Hughes 41, 42

Komatsu 32

Kongsberg 32

Kurganmashzavod 34

L-3 Comm 50, 52

Lockheed Martin 10, 11, 12, 13, 23, 24

Magellan Aerospace 26

MBDA 13,18,28

Mectron 48

Mitsubishi Electric 58

MKU 12, 16, 17

Moratex 15

MTU 19

NORINCO 30,31

Northrop Grumman 09, 10, 11, 12,

Orbital ATK 19, 26, 29, 44, 46, 47

Oto Melara 32

Pakistan Aeronautical Complex 49

Patria 30,31,35

Poly Technologies 31

I INDEX TO ADVERTISERS

3M PELTOR 17

AIMPOINT 13

APHS SINGAPORE 37

AR MODULAR 19

ARMADA SUBSCRIPTION 9

ARMADA WEBSITE 25

DATRON 7

DSA 2016 53

DUBAI AIRSHOW 27

ELBIT SYSTEMS C4

EXPODEFENSA 57

FLIR C2, 43

FNSS 35

HARRIS EXELIS 5

INVISIO 5

KONGSBERG 29

LEMO 11

MTU 17

NEXTER 25

OSHKOSH C2

OTAKAR 47

OTO MELARA 33

ROSOBORONEXPORT 21

SAGEM C4

SINGAPORE AIRSHOW 55

SPECIAL OPERATIONS C3

TACTICAL RADIO C3

Entries highlighted with Red Numbers are foundin Modern Soldier Equipment Compendium 2015

QinetiQ 22, 26

Raduga NPO 49

Rafale 12

Raytheon 10, 13, 18, 19, 20, 22

ReconRobotic 24

Remington 11

Renault 32

Revision 14

Rheinmetall (MaK System) 33, 41

Rockwell Collins 08, 10, 21

Rohde & Schwarz 20

Roketsan 26

Roll-Royce 19

RUAG 36

Saab 40, 49

Sagem 54, 56

Sig Sauer 13

SigmaPoint 21

Sikorsky 11, 26

Smith & Wesson 13

ST Kinetics 35

Steyr Mannlicher 11

Sukhoi 49

Tawazun 26

Terma 38, 41

Textron System 26, 29

Thales 18, 26, 28, 29, 32, 41, 42

Ultra Electronics 20

Vectronix 07

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On 8 July, the British government announced that it would retain its defence spending levels at two percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for the next five

years. The move followed speculation before the United Kingdom’s general election, held on 7 May, that the UK’s defence budget could fall below this magic figure as whichever party or coalition was to win the election would have to wrest with the size of the UK’s public spending levels.

The two percent of GDP defence spending figure is highly significant: it is the non-binding amount which the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) expects its members to spend annually on defence. In reality, a handful of the Alliance’s membership achieves this two percent figure annually. According to figures released by NATO, only five of its members are expected to achieve, or to better, this two percent figure in 2015, namely the United States, Greece, Poland, the UK and Estonia. In the UK’s case, this has been rubber-stamped by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the UK’s finance minister, George Osborne when announcing the government’s spending priorities on 8 July, following the Conservative general election victory.

The United States, arguably the UK’s closest military ally, had viewed the possibility of the UK reducing its defence spending below two percent with some unease. During a meeting with Mr. Cameron held in Washington DC in January, President Barack Obama voiced caution regarding the possible reduction, warning that if the UK did not maintain its defence spending commitments, then other NATO members would be tempted to follow suit, particular regarding the economic hardship which much of Europe is experiencing. Moreover, the two percent defence spending level goes an important

way to reassuring the United States that the UK is prepared to play a major role in NATO- and US-led military operations.

The decision to maintain UK defence spending at two percent of GDP could be timely. The UK witnessed one of its worst attacks by foreign insurgents on 25 June when 30 British nationals were killed and 25 wounded after Seifiddine Rezgui Yacoubi, believed to be affiliated to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) Islamist organisation went on a gun rampage in the Tunisian Mediterranean resort of Sousse. One of the responses of the British government has been to contemplate extending Operation SHADER, the UK’s codename for its military campaign against ISIS in Iraq and Syria waged in support of the US-led Operation INHERENT RESOLVE anti-ISIS initiative, to include air strikes against ISIS targets in Syria.

Mr. Cameron issued his strongest hint yet that this may occur telling MPs in the House of Commons that, following the 25 June attacks; “we need to crush (ISIS) in Syria and Iraq … We must deal with the security threat at source, whether (ISIS) in Iraq and Syria, or other extremist groups around the world.” Keeping defence spending at two percent of GDP could well assist Mr. Cameron in this aim.

In fact, the UK’s Operation SHADER is under the spotlight for Armada’s exciting new

‘Operational Focus’ column (Page 14) which will, each issue, analyse specific military operations ongoing around the world, explaining how platforms and subsystems are being used by the participants. Similarly, our new ‘Programme Focus’ column () will make a detailed anatomy of specific large-scale procurements, explaining to readers their current status, and future plans.

Thomas Withington, Editor

Editorial

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OPERATIONAL fOcus

It is over one year since the so-called Islamic state of Iraq and syria (IsIs) occupied significant parts of

these two countries. In response to rapid territorial gains and reports of widespread human rights

abuses by IsIs, a united states-led coalition commenced an air campaign against the movement

in August 2014.

Fred Shepherd

The anti-ISIS US-led air campaign codenamed Operation INHERENT RESOLVE (OIR) commenced on 8 August 2014. Military action against

ISIS was necessary, President Barack Obama said during a televised address on 10 August 2014, to protect US citizens and interests in the city of Erbil and to protect that city against ISIS’ advance. Erbil is the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan, an autonomous region in the north of Iraq. Mr. Obama continued that military action was necessary to prevent the massacre of members of the Yazidi religious community, who had taken refuge against ISIS attack in the Sinjar mountains of northern Iraq.

Though the US seemed able to accomplish these goals relatively quickly, due to its preponderance of airpower and military assets in Iraq and the Middle East ISIS, with an estimated 30000 fighters, has continued to maintain a strong foothold on the ground, controlling vast amounts of territory and crucial infrastructure across Iraq and Syria.

uP IN ThE AIR

A Rockwell Collins/Boeing B-1B Lancer bomber assigned to the 9th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron of the USAF takes off from Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar. The B-1B has provided close air support for Operation INHERENT RESOLVE since the beginning of the US-led air campaign against ISIS © USAF


Alongside a group of Arab countries (Bahrain, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates) the US extended its air campaign into Syria on 23 September 2014 to disrupt the organisation’s activities there, and its Syrian-based supply lines into Iraq. Ultimately, OIR under the command of the United States Central Command (CENTCOM), which directs the operation from Al Udeid airbase in Qatar, has the objective to degrade and ultimately defeat ISIS using air strikes as part of a comprehensive strategy, with other key lines of effort including military support, attacking ISIS finances, countering foreign fighter flows and providing humanitarian aid.

Ten nations (Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, Morocco, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the US) have executed air strikes in Iraq since August 2014 with another six in Syria (Bahrain, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates and the US). It is fair to say that the US has been the predominant

actor in the air campaign against ISIS as the number and variety of aircraft it has deployed dwarfs the other participants. This is particular evident in the air strike statistics. Figures supplied to Armada by the US Department of Defence state that, as of 18 June 2015, the US has completed 4670 air strikes (2879 Iraq/1791 Syria), compared to other coalition members which have generated 1036 air strikes (927 Iraq/109 Syria).

The key objective of the Coalition’s air strikes is to enable local ground forces in Iraq and Syria to more effectively fight ISIS by disrupting its ability to project power. Air strikes have been performed against ISIS armoured vehicles, logistics vehicles and artillery captured by ISIS from the Iraqi Army, according to CENTCOM. Fixed targets have included ISIS formations, checkpoints and barracks, as well as oil facilities that the group has captured to generate revenue.

In a written statement provided to Armada, CENTCOM claims that the air campaign has slowed the expansion of ISIS

considerably, disrupting its ability to mass and manoeuvre forces, putting pressure on its leadership cells and severing command-and-control and supply chains. Despite this, ISIS is a guerrilla army with considerable experience fighting on its home turf. It should be remembered that in 2007 the US had 150000 troops in Iraq and considerable air support at the height of its intervention but still failed to comprehensively eliminate Islamist militant groups active in the country.

I UnIted StateSThe US Air Force (USAF), navy and marines are all currently operating dozens of different aircraft from their inventory, flying from airfields and aircraft carriers across the region. When asked for specific details on where US aircraft were based, Commander Elissa Smith, a US Department of Defence spokesperson, refused to give specifics due to “host nation sensitivities”, but was able to confirm that the Combined Air Operations Centre of CENTCOM which directs the OIR air

A US Navy Northrop Grumman C-2A Greyhound aircraft attached to 40 Fleet Logistics Support Squadron takes off from the aircraft carrier USS George HW Bush in the Persian Gulf. The aircraft is mainly used to transport high-priority cargo between carriers and shore bases © US Navy


OPERATIONAL fOcus

campaign is based at Al Udeid airbase in Qatar, and that CENTCOM has additional Joint Operations Centres in the Iraqi capital Baghdad and Erbil, presumably to facilitate interoperability between US-led efforts and other national and insurgent anti-ISIS forces. Reports from a number of media organisations suggest that Ali Al Salem airbase in Kuwait and Al Dhafra airbase in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), along with Al Udeid airbase, are where most of the US aircraft involved in the air campaign are based.

Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MRCA), such as the USAF’s McDonnell Douglas/Boeing F-15E Strike Eagle and General Dynamics/Lockheed Martin F-16C/D Fighting Falcon, have flown the majority of sorties in the campaign. Both fighters can deploy a range of bombs, with the F-15E able to carry almost any air-to-ground weapon in the USAF inventory, including Raytheon GBU-12 Paveway-II laser-guided bombs, which have been used frequently throughout the campaign. Operation INHERENT RESOLVE has been the first combat mission for the Lockheed Martin F-22A Raptor air-superiority fighter, which can perform air-to-ground missions using either the Boeing GBU-32/35(V)1/2/B Joint Direct Attack Munition family of Global Positioning System (GPS)-guided weapons or the Boeing GBU-39 Small Diameter Bomb. US Navy Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet MRCA are also in use, with the first strikes in the campaign being carried out by these aircraft launched from the USS George HW Bush ‘Nimitz’ class aircraft carrier against

effective supporting ground forces due to their comparatively slow flying speeds and low altitude flight profiles, made possible due to ISIS’s lack of ground-based air defence. The United States Marine Corps (USMC) has also deployed Boeing AV-8B Harrier-II ground attack aircraft to provide surveillance, as well as engaging in some air strikes.

The US has deployed a range of surveillance and special missions platforms in the anti-ISIS fight. These include Boeing E-3B/C/G Sentry aircraft alongside the US Navy’s (USN) Northrop Grumman E-2C/D Hawkeyes for Airborne Early Warning (AEW) and air battle management plus Northrop Grumman/Boeing E-8C Joint Surveillance

an ISIS convoy and mobile artillery unit on the outskirts of Erbil on 10 August 2014.

The USAF’s Rockwell International/Boeing B-1B Lancer bomber has a payload capacity of 75000lb (34019 kilograms). Kurdish insurgents on the ground in both Iraq and Syria have had great success in driving ISIS back through air support from the B-1Bs. This was apparent during the four-month battle to recapture the Syrian town of Kobani from ISIS which culminated in a coalition of Kurdish forces liberating the city from ISIS control on 27 January.

Ground attack aircraft, such as the USAF’s Fairchild Republic/Lockheed Martin A-10C Thunderbolt-II, along with the Lockheed Martin AC-130W Stinger II fixed-wing gunship, have been highly

US Navy MH-60S Seahawk maritime support helicopters take off from the flight deck of the

aircraft carrier USS George HW Bush. These helicopters can be used for a variety of roles

supporting Operation INHERENT RESOLVE such as search and rescue © US Navy

A Royal Canadian Air Force F/A-18A Hornet MRCA lands following a mission

in support of Operation INHERENT RESOLVE. Canada has provided six of

these aircraft to assist the anti-ISIS Coalition © US Navy

Target Attack Radar System platforms providing ground surveillance. Lockheed Martin EC-130J Commando Solo aircraft have jammed hostile Radio Frequency (RF) communications, while the USN’s Boeing E/A-18G Growler aircraft are providing general RF radar and communications jamming supplemented in this role by the USMC’s EA-6B Prowlers. The electronic war against ISIS’ use of the electromagnetic spectrum is reinforced by Boeing RC-135V/W Rivet Joint electronic intelligence aircraft, which can collect valuable information regarding ISIS’ electronic order-of-battle. These aircraft are operated by both the USAF and the Royal Air Force (RAF). Last, but not least, the Lockheed Martin U-2S Dragon Lady, the famed spy plane of the Cold War, remains a key aircraft for surveying the theatre gathering a variety of imagery.

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) have played a vital reconnaissance role in OIR with Northrop Grumman RQ-4B Global Hawks performing a high-altitude surveillance role similar to the U-2S, but with the ability to stay aloft for over 28 hours. Other UAVs, such as the General Atomics MQ-1B Predator and MQ-9 Reaper also fulfil a surveillance role, while providing air-to-ground effects when required. One of the first strikes in OIR on 8 August 2014 was against an ISIS mortar position close to Erbil by an MQ-1B Predator, firing two Lockheed Martin AGM-114 Hellfire series laser-guided air-to-ground missiles to destroy the target.

The US military is also supporting the campaign with rotary assets. The USAF has deployed Sikorsky HH-60G Pave Hawk Combat Search and Rescue (CSAR) helicopters, while the USN has fielded Sikorsky MH-60R/S Seahawk maritime support helicopters. The USMC is currently operating Sikorsky CH-53E Super Stallion heavy-lift helicopters, as well as Bell UH-1Y Venom medium-lift utility helicopters and Bell AH-1W Super Cobra attack helicopters, their main roles being to assist USMC CSAR efforts.

Aircraft such as the USAF’s Lockheed Martin C-130J Hercules and Boeing C-17A Globemaster III tactical turboprop and strategic turbofan freighters have played an important role moving troops, weapons and aid during the campaign. Other logistics aircraft include the Bell-Boeing MV-22B Osprey tilt-rotors of

Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet aircraft have been indispensable to anti-ISIS efforts in Iraq and Syria. In this image, an F/A-18E of the US Navy VFA-31 strike fighter squadron is launched from the deck of the USS George HW Bush ‘Nimitz’ class aircraft carrier.

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OPERATIONAL fOcus

the USMC for troop transport and the Northrop Grumman C-2A Greyhound used by the USN to deliver supplies. The USAF is also currently operating two types of tanker; the McDonnell Douglas/Boeing KC-10A Extender and Boeing KC-135R Stratotanker.

As noted above several other nations have provided aircraft to OIR. There is insufficient space here to discuss each country’s contribution in detail although some of the larger national contributions are examined. For example, the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) under Operation OKRA, the codename for that country’s contribution to OIR, has been participating in anti-ISIS air strikes since 1 October 2014. RAAF aircraft are currently based in the Al Minhad airbase in the UAE, using F/A-18F MRCA for attacks and providing a Boeing E-7A Wedgetail for AEW and air battle management, plus an Airbus KC-30A tanker to refuel coalition aircraft. According to an Australian Department of Defence spokesperson, six E-7As have been rotated through the Iraqi theatre since October 2014. Regarding their tasks, the spokesperson continues that the aircraft

assist the “coordination of all airspace. In doing so, crews control coalition aircraft in and out of theatre, assist with the air-to-air refuelling and generate radar and datalink tracks to support the recognised air picture (of the current air operation).”

I cANAdAExecuting airstrikes in both Iraq and Syria, the Royal Canadian Air Force contribution is codenamed Operation IMPACT. Ottawa has sent McDonnell Douglas/Boeing F/A-18A/B Hornet MRCA to perform air strikes, plus Lockheed Martin P-3C Orion maritime patrol aircraft for reconnaissance. This is in addition to Airbus A310-300 tankers for refuelling, plus C-130J and C-17A aircraft to move troops and supplies.

I fRANcEOpération CHAMMAL is France’s contribution to OIR. The first European nation to take part in air strikes, on 18 September 2014 two Dassault Rafale F3A/B MRCA from the Armée de l’Air (AdlA/French Air Force) dropped four GBU-12 Paveway-II bombs on an ISIS

depot in Mosul, northern Iraq. Alongside the Rafale-F3A/B aircraft, the Aeronavale (French Naval Aviation) has deployed Dassault Breguet ATL-2 maritime patrol aircraft with the AdlA also supplying Boeing C-135FR tankers; all operating from Al Dhafra airbase in the UAE. From November 2014, the AdlA deployed six Dassault Mirage 2000D MRCA to Jordan (the exact location not being revealed by the French government). Alongside the ATL-2 aircraft discussed above the FS Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier and flagship of the Marine Nationale (French Navy) was deployed to the Persian Gulf in February 2015 adding further aircraft to the French contingent, including Rafale-F3M and Dassault-Breguet Super Étendard MRCA.

I ARAb cONTRIbuTIONsThe Royal Jordanian Air Force (RJAF) is small, but highly capable, providing F-16As operating from the As Shaheed Muwaffaq Al Salti airbase in the east of Jordan. The RJAF took part in coalition strikes in September 2014 against ISIS targets in Syria, entering the Iraqi theatre on 5 February 2015. This followed the

A USAF Fairchild Republic/Lockheed Martin A-10C Thunderbolt-II ground attack aircraft takes off. The aircraft has been used extensively for close air support and battlefield interdiction missions © USAF


murder by ISIS on 3 January of Flight Lieutenant (posthumously Captain) Muath al-Kasasbeh, a captured RJAF pilot whose F-16A crashed in ISIS-held territory on 24 December 2014. Jordan retaliated against the killing of Capt. Al-Kasasbeh by launching a series of large air strikes in Mosul.

The Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF) has contributed Panavia Tornado-IDS and F-15SA MRCA to air strikes taking place in Syria in September and October 2014. On 25 February it was reported that an RSAF Eurofighter Typhoon MRCA made the combat debut of Raytheon Paveway-IV GPS and laser-guided bombs dropped from this aircraft while performing strikes in Syria. Finally, the UAE Air Force was confirmed as taking part in air strikes in Syria in 2014, providing F-16E/F and Mirage 2000-9/9D MRCA.

I UnIted KIngdomCodenamed Operation SHADER, RAF air strikes began on 30 September 2014 when a pair of Pavania Tornado-GR4/4A ground attack aircraft, which had already commenced reconnaissance sorties on 27 September 2014, engaged an ISIS heavy

weapon position with a Paveway-IV (see above), and an ISIS ‘Technical’ (armed civilian four-wheel drive vehicle) using an MBDA Brimstone radar/laser guided air-to-ground missile. In subsequent missions the Tornado-GR4/4As, launched from RAF Akrotiri airbase in Cyprus, have deployed the Brimstone weapon on several occasions. Other RAF aircraft provided to the anti-ISIS efforts in Iraq and Syria include MQ-9 Reaper UAVs which are based at Ali Al Salem airbase in Kuwait, and an RC-135W flying from Al Udeid airbase (see above). Support assets include C-17A freighters, plus Airbus KC.3 Voyager tankers. Additional support is provided by Boeing Chinook HC.4 heavy-lift helicopters and Lockheed Martin C5 Hercules tactical turboprop freighters, with command and control, and reconnaissance assistance performed by Boeing Sentry AEW.1 AEW aircraft, and Raytheon/Bombardier Sentinel R1 ground surveillance aircraft.

Is this vast formation of combat aircraft and their supporting platforms having any effect? While the campaign is just over one year old, air power expert Andrew

A Northrop Grumman E-2C Hawkeye airborne early warning aircraft takes off from a US Navy

aircraft carrier to conduct a sortie in support of anti-ISIS air operations. These aircraft have assisted in air battle management © US Navy

Brookes, director of the London-based Air League aviation advocacy organisation is sceptical. “I am not convinced that we are knocking ISIS back.” He believes that, at best, air power contains ISIS and perhaps prevents it from making further large-scale territorial gains, particularly in Iraq. “On the military side, I see some aircraft plinking things, but I don’t see any lasting defeat of ISIS possible without the deployment of ground forces, and a long term political strategy for the areas under their control, and for Iraq and Syria in general.” Mr. Brookes argues that the air campaign will not achieve “much unless it is aligned with a land campaign.” Given that the US alone suffered 4491 service personnel killed in Iraq between 2003 and 2014, both the US government and the US population in general is likely to be extremely cautious both now, and in the foreseeable future, regarding the deployment of troops to forcibly evict ISIS from the areas under its control, and to comprehensively defeat the organisation For now at least, air power remains the favoured means of the US, and its allies, to engage the ISIS threat.


PROGRAMME fOcus

BAE systems’ Global combat ship (Gcs) will soon begin to replace the Royal Navy’s ‘Duke’ class frigates, in service since 1990. The Gcs design will also be offered for export to satisfy surface combatant requirements around the world.

Luca Peruzzi

BRiTANNiA cOOls ThE WAvEs


A high level of interoperability is intrinsic to BAE Systems’ GCS design, and alongside its adaptability to a wide range of

missions, interoperability is another of the 17 key user requirements defined by the United Kingdom Ministry of Defence (UK MoD) for the vessel. Other tasks envisaged for the GCS include maritime

fire support, support of special forces, air defence, Anti-Surface Warfare (ASuW), Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) and maritime interdiction.

A written answer published on 2 March by Philip Dunn, the UK government’s parliamentary under-secretary of state for defence, to a question submitted by the Scottish National Party’s shadow spokesperson for defence Angus Robertson, provided some instructive details regarding the current status of the GCS programme. According to Mr. Dunn, the Capability Decision Point which defined the key user requirements to be delivered by the GCS was reached by the UK MoD in November 2011. He added that this was achieved during the programme’s Assessment Phase (AP) which had commenced in March 2010.

The AP allowed the Ministry of Defence to plan for a class of 13 ships, approve the ships’ baseline design and focus on more detailed costing and design work for the overall GCS programme. On 20 February the UK MoD announced that this work had been completed, thus concluding the AP, moving the programme forward into its Demonstration Phase (DP) which commenced on 1 April. Worth $1.3

billion, Mr. Dunn stated that the DP covers detailed design work, as well as the investment in shore-based testing facilities and purchasing key initial equipment for the construction of the Royal Navy’s first three GCS vessels.

Furthermore, an earlier written statement regarding the GCS programme published on 23 February by the UK government’s secretary of state for defence Michael Fallon stated that, while the DP phase continues “(the UK MoD) will continue to work to understand better the programme schedule, cost and risk. This approach draws on key lessons from the (Royal Navy’s) ‘Queen Elizabeth’ class aircraft carrier programme by ensuring that the (GCS) design is sufficiently mature, the supply chain is fully mobilised early in the programme to de-risk material supply, and a full joint analysis of programme risk is completed before awarding a build contract.”

This “build contract” will constitute the so-called ‘Main Gate’ decision, when the UK MoD decides to perform the major investment decision for the programme, and to initiate the Manufacture Phase. This will commence with the construction of the first ship in 2016, with the UK MoD

Following the award of the demonstration phase in February 2015, the programme is progressing towards the manufacturing phase, which is planned to commence in 2016 © BAE Systems

With the Global Combat Ship programme the Royal Navy will replace

the ‘Duke’ class frigates currently in service with a class of 13 new

generation multirole combatants to be constructed by BAE Systems as the

prime contractor © BAE Systems


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expecting her to be delivered to the Royal Navy in 2022.

I DEsIGnThe GCS will replace the Royal Navy’s 13 ‘Duke’ class frigates. The Royal Navy’s current planning assumption is for the 13 replacement GCS ships to have a planned service life of circa 25 years, with the final example not expected to retire before the end of the 2050s.

Unlike the ‘Duke’ class frigate, which was primarily designed for Cold War-era ASW operations in the North Atlantic, the GCS has global deployability, flexibility and adaptability at the core of her design. As a result, BAE Systems has built appropriate margins in the design for space, weight, stability, hull life network architecture and power generation to allow the ships to meet changing threats, and to acquire new technology during their lifespan.

The ship has been realised using the latest Computer-Aided Design (CAD) techniques and Virtual Reality software. BAE Systems has used VR to allow design engineers to project in three dimensions the full size and layout of the ships’ rooms and compartment. This has proven

‘Duke’ class frigates, with a complement of 118 and overall accommodations for 190 berths, allowing the embarkation of 72 additional personnel including the helicopter crew and a detachment of Royal Marines.

The ship features a specially-designed acoustically-optimised hull that produces a low wake by cutting a smooth and quiet path though the water. The hull form and the propeller design are fundamental to the ship’s ASW role. With this mission as a main task, the hull has to produce the minimum amount of noise. Extensive work has been performed to optimise the hull using both CAD, and physical prototypes and models.

I ARMAMEntThe hull and superstructure have been shaped to reduce Radar Cross Section (RCS). According to renderings released by BAE Systems during the 2013 Defence and Security Equipment International exhibition in London, the GCS design has a bow area accommodating for the first time on a modern Royal Navy combatant vessel, a 127mm gun mount. Installation of a 127mm medium calibre gun will enable, according to the UK MoD, the adoption of new technologies in terms of range, precision and payloads that were not possible with the Royal Navy’s

The GCS’ flexible mission bay is characterised by a handling system which can embark and disembark manned and unmanned platforms, as well as materiel and containers without support from the shore © BAE Systems

invaluable on previous BAE Systems programmes, including the Royal Navy’s

‘Astute’ class of nuclear-powered attack submarines and ‘Daring’ class destroyers. According to BAE Systems, the CAD and VR approaches are not only quicker and easier than conventional design techniques, but allow for better collaboration between the company, the Royal Navy and the suppliers shortening the design phase of the warships’ construction.

Designed to operate as part of a large task group as well as on independent manoeuvres, the GCS is larger than the

‘Duke’ class ships having a steel monohull with a basic displacement of 5400 tonnes, a length and beam of respectively 148 metres and 20 metres (485 feet and 66 feet) with a draught of almost six metres (19ft). A Combined Diesel Electric and Gas (CODLOG) machinery arrangement on a two-shaft configuration (see below) will provide a maximum speed in excess of 28 knots (52 kilometres-per-hour), although other official sources indicate this to be in excess of 26 knots (48km/h), along with a range of over 7000 nautical miles (12964 kilometres) at 15 knots (28km/h). The crew will be smaller compared to the


PROGRAMME fOcus

existing BAE Systems Mk.8 115mm gun. The GCS’ addition of a 127mm weapon enhances the ability to support land forces at far greater ranges from the sea and with greater accuracy, states the UK MoD.

Tenders to meet the Maritime Indirect Fire System (MIFS) requirement, which covers the provision of the 127mm weapon onboard the GCS, were submitted in August 2013 by BAE Systems which is offering its Mk.45 Mod.4 weapon. OTO Melara, meanwhile, has teamed with Babcock to offer its 127/64 LW medium-calibre gun. According to industrial sources but not officially confirmed by the UK MoD, the BAE Systems solution has been selected.

The GCS will also include a vertical launcher system mounted forward from which MBDA’s Sea Ceptor Surface-to-Air Missile (SAM) will be launched. The provision of 48 Sea Ceptor SAMs in a quad-pack configuration will provide the GCS with considerable defensive surface-to-air armament, with a local area capability to protect other vessels, unlike the MBDA Sea Wolf SAM it replaces on the ‘Duke’ class. With a range in excess of 13nm (25km), the missile uses an all-weather active radar seeker and two-way datalink between the missile and the ship. The Sea Ceptor can engage a broad range of targets including high-speed, agile low RCS targets in an electro-magnetically dense environment.

The multirole missile weapon package will be deployed from the 24-cell Flexible Strike Silo also mounted forward comprising Lockheed Martin’s Mk.41 launchers. These will be able to accommodate a range of weapons such as Raytheon’s BGM-109E Tomahawk surface-to-surface missile and unspecified anti-ship missiles likely to include those developed by the MBDA Perseus programme. This is intended to yield a surface-to-surface missile capable of launch from land, sea and air platforms with a range of circa 135nm (250km).

The GCS’s air component, in the form of the AgustaWestland AW-159 Lynx Wildcat HMA.2 naval support helicopter (see below) will be able to deploy both the heavy MBDA Sea Venom and the Thales Light Multi-Role Missile (LMM) air-to-surface weapons developed under the Anglo-French Future Anti-Surface Guided Weapon initiative. For more information regarding the LMM, please see Roy Braybrook’s ‘Love and

The GCS will have a local air defence capability thanks to the MBDA Sea Ceptor surface-to-air missile system based on the Common Anti-air Modular Missile (CAMM) being acquired for the Royal Navy’s ‘Duke’ class frigates © MBDA


Rockets’ article in this issue. Close-in defence against anti-ship missiles and asymmetric threats will be provided using two remote-controlled Orbital ATK Mk.44 Bushmaster-II 30mm cannons and two Raytheon Phalanx close-in weapons systems.

The forward superstructure block features the bridge with extending lateral wings, covered by satellite communications, the Sea Ceptor SAM datalink antennae and the main forward mast which has a reduced RCS compared to the forward mast equipping the ‘Duke’ class. This mast will accommodate the GCS’ BAE Systems Type 997/ARTISAN (Advanced Radar Target Indication Situational Awareness and Navigation) naval surveillance radar: For more information on this radar, please see Thomas Withington’s ‘Sea Change’ article in this issue. The mast will also contain a conformal electronic warfare antenna suite.

A key feature of the ship, which stands her apart from several other surface warships around the world, is her Flexible Mission Bay (see below), capable of accommodating a range of systems including boats and unmanned vehicles, together with the ships’ aircraft hangar. The latter is covered by the two rear communications masts, one of which incorporates the stern funnel and the other of which contains the remote-controlled 30mm gun mounts (see above).

The hangar can accommodate alternatively one AgustaWestland AW-101 Merlin HM.2 or two AW-159 Lynx

Wildcat HMA.2 naval support helicopters, while the wide flight deck is capable of accommodating a Boeing CH-47F Chinook heavy-lift helicopter. In extremis, an AW-101 Merlin HM.2, according to the UK MoD, could be recovered for short surge operations in the Flexible Mission Bay (see below). Underneath the flight deck is the stern area dedicated to the low-frequency active towed sonar.

I ProPulsIonAs the GCS’ main roles range from ASW to general support and humanitarian operations, the propulsion system has to offer speed and efficiency, as well as near total silence, although not all at the same moment. According to presentations provided by the UK MoD and the Royal Navy, the GCS propulsion system is a hybrid CODLOG configuration, where a single Rolls-Royce MT30 40 megawatt gas turbine engine will directly drive both the ship’s two shafts via a splitting gearbox, in combination with four MTU 20V 4000-series diesel generators. These will produce electricity and in turn power General Electric motors to drive the ships’ propellers at lower speeds and for near silent operations. The MTU 20V diesel generators produce the power for the propellers and the rest of the ship. The noise of these engines is isolated by putting them on acoustic mounts, while an acoustic enclosure reduces the ambient noise.

To obtain higher speeds, in excess of 28 knots, the ship uses the MT30 gas turbine, which drives through a splitting gearbox,

and then into a second reduction gearbox, which then drives the shafts and propeller. When the ship is operating quietly, the gas turbine and subsequent gearbox are shut down to eliminate all the mechanical noise. The propellers are then turned by the ultra-quiet General Electric propulsion motors, using power provided by the four MTU diesel generators. One of the key technologies enabling this propulsion system type is its use of Variable Speed Drive technology.

The innovative, large Flexible Mission Bay, hangar and flight deck arrangement has been incorporated in the design to meet evolving and future threats in the maritime environment. The Flexible Mission Bay, adjacent hangar and flight deck provide a significantly large and more adaptable space than is currently available on the ‘Duke’ class frigates. According to the UK MoD, the intention is for the Flexible Mission Bay to accommodate a range of manned and unmanned surface, air and underwater vehicles, adapted on a tailored mission basis to the changing needs of deployment.

The same Flexible Mission Bay can accommodate four twelve-metre (39-feet) long boats for operations by Royal Marines and other troops. Such is the flexibility and capacity of the space that it could even hold ten 20-feet (six metre) long shipping containers or mission modules containing anything from disaster relief supplies to special medical or command and control facilities.

The large flight deck can operate a range of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). The lesson identified from the trials conducted with a Boeing-Insitu Scan Eagle UAV on the ‘Duke’ class frigate HMS Somerset in the Persian Gulf during June 2014 established that such a system should be operated from the deck of a vessel of this size in a range of roles from surveillance to targeting. These lessons have been incorporated by BAE Systems into the GCS design.

I Combat systemTo satisfy the Royal Navy’s requirements to conduct joint and multinational operations across the full spectrum of warfare, the GCS will be equipped with extensive and advanced combat systems to cope with present and future threats. To reduce the overheads involved in procuring new equipment, whilst still reaping the rewards of more modern

The AgustaWestland AW-101 Merlin HM.2 naval support helicopter will provide maritime force protection and Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) capabilities when embarked on the GCS © AgustaWestland


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technology, one of the key objectives of the ‘Duke’ class Capability Sustainment Programme (CSP) is that investment in new systems and equipment for the in-service ‘Duke’ class should, wherever possible, deliver benefits for the CGS. The CSP is upgrading the ‘Duke’ class with a number of new combat systems including the Sea Ceptor SAM and Type-997/ARTISAN radar (see above). Thus systems such as these procured for the CSP will cross-deck to the GCS. According to Captain David Heley, the Royal Navy’s GCS integrated export team leader, the balance between in-service items coming from the ‘Duke’ class CSP programme and those newly developed for the GCS is 80 percent versus 20 percent.

The Surface Common Combat System computer infrastructure for the ‘Duke’ class CSP upgrade, the provision of which is being performed by BAE Systems following a contract award by the UK MoD in January 2014, supports the development and de-risking of the GCS’s combat system, based upon a shared

infrastructure. The shared infrastructure enables combat system computer processors to be hosted on the ship’s Shared Computing Environment (SCE). This will reduce computer hardware costs, ship services and bring down the overall costs of vessel ownership. It will also accelerate and simplify future technology insertions and capability upgrades.

Regarding other systems, Rohde and Schwarz was contracted in September 2013 to provide the GCS’ digital integrated communications, while Raytheon will supply the integrated navigation and bridge systems. Beyond the Sea Ceptor SAM and Type-997/ARTISAN radar other items to be transferred from the ‘Duke’ class to the GCS include the latter’s existing Thales Sonar 2087 low frequency active/passive variable depth sonar and Ultra Electronics Sonar 2170 Sea Sentor Torpedo Defence System. The Royal Navy is also looking at a series of other enhancements for the ‘Duke’ class planned to transit to the GCS. These include a technology refresh for the Thales

Sonar 2050 hull-mounted medium-range equipment deployed onboard the ‘Duke’ class. Other systems equipping the GCS include the Defensive Aids Suite-Surface Ships (DAS-SS) self-protection equipment developed by the UK MoD.

I ExPORtsIn addition to the Royal Navy, BAE Systems is hopeful that export orders could be won for the design. Reports emerged during 2010 that the firm may offer the GCS design to the Marinha do Brasil (Brazilian Navy) at some undisclosed point in the future, as a result of a defence industrial partnership established by the British and Brazilian governments in 2010. One year later, it was reported that the UK government and BAE Systems had offered joint production of the GCS in Indian shipyards. Should any future acquisitions involving India or Brazil, or any other nation for that matter, come to fruition this could help to reduce the future GCS procurement costs to the Royal Navy as the project unfolds.

The GCS has a Combined Diesel Electric and Gas (CODLOG) propulsion configuration, where the single Rolls-Royce MT30 engine directly drives the ship’s two shafts via a splitting gearbox in order to obtain a speed in excess 26 knots (48km/h) © Rolls-Royce

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AIR-TO-GROUND WEAPONS

This low-cost advance in air-to-ground weapon lethality is being achieved by adding Guidance and Control (GC) kits to existing ordnance. Precision

guidance has also made it possible to engage a broad target set, using only small lightweight warheads which in turn drive down weapon size and mass.

I ROckET PROjEcTIlESThe United States Air Force (USAF) began to use precision guided munitions

en masse during the involvement of the United States in the Vietnam War between 1965 and 1975. The addition of precision guidance kits to ‘dumb’ bombs, illustrated by the laser-guided Texas Instruments (now Raytheon) Paveway-I system during this conflict, proved to be more cost effective than developing precision-guided air-to-ground weapons from scratch. Since the commencement of US-led combat operations in Afghanistan and Iraq last decade, a trend has emerged

Roy Braybrook (with inputs from Thomas Withington)

The need to reduce casualties, take slower ground attack aircraft outside the reach of ground-based air defences, and arm large numbers of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) is driving the development of small, lightweight air-to-ground precision-guided munitions.

for precision guidance kits to equip air-to-ground rockets providing an equivalent level of accuracy to Air-to-Ground Missiles (AGMs) but at less cost.

The United States armed forces has employed the 70mm Hydra 70 air-to-ground rocket since the late-1940s which is now produced by General Dynamics. It was employed during the Korean War of 1950-53. The unit cost of the rocket is about $1500, depending on the weapons’ warhead choice which can include cargo

lOVEAND ROckETS

The mid-body location of BAE Systems’ APKWS guidance and control modules when installed on General Dynamics’ Hydra 70 rockets adds significant length. This is not a problem with uncapped launchers, such as this seven-round M260 © BAE Systems


or unitary warhead versions. The United States Army selected BAE Systems to provide the company’s APKWS (Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System) in April 2006. Executive oversight of the programme was then transferred to the US Navy in November 2008.

The APKWS is a laser guidance kit inserted between the Hydra 70 rocket warhead and motor. An APKWS-equipped Hydra 70 has a nominal range of circa 0.8 to 3.7 nautical miles (1.5 to five kilometres). It adds ten pounds (four kilograms) of weight to the Hydra 70. The standard APKWS uses the ten-pound M151 high explosive warhead, but the United States Marine Corps (USMC) has plans (as yet unfunded) to have it in service by 2019 with the 14lb (six kilogram) Nammo M282 Multi-Purpose Penetrator warhead with the weapons package deployed on its Bell UH-1Y medium-lift utility helicopter and AH-1Z gunship. Meanwhile, the unit cost of the APKWS is approximately

The first export order for the BAE Systems APKWS came from the Royal Jordanian Air Force in 2014, to arm its Airbus CN-235 gunships and turboprop transports. Other orders have been forthcoming from Iraq and Saudi Arabia © BAE Systems

Raytheon’s seven-round 70mm Talon rocket launcher is seen here on the left, with two BGM-176B Griffin tubes in the middle, and four rail-launched Lockheed Martin Joint Air-Ground Missiles on the right © Raytheon



$28000, providing a dramatic cost saving relative to the $100,000 unit cost of Lockheed Martin’s AGM-114 Hellfire family of AGMs. For faster aircraft, the APKWS-FW (Fixed-Wing) has a cartridge that forces open canards to overcome the airflow surrounding the aircraft which can conspire to ‘stick’ the weapon to the airframe. Although the APKWS is already cleared on the UH-1Y and AH-1Z of the USMC David Harrold, precision guidance solutions director for BAE Systems, notes that it is also permitted for carriage on other aircraft. “It has been cleared on the Sikorsky MH-60S naval support helicopter of the US Navy, and the Boeing AH-64D/E Apache Longbow/Guardian gunships of the US Army. In addition to these rotary-wing aircraft, the APKWS has been fired from the McDonnell-Douglas/Boeing AV-8B (USMC) and the Fairchild Republic/Lockheed Martin A-10C Thunderbolt (USAF) ground attack aircraft

and General Dynamics/Lockheed Martin F-16C/D multi-role combat aircraft.”

In April 2014 the US Navy signed an agreement with the Royal Jordanian Air Force (RJAF) to supply the APKWS-FW for the latter’s Airbus CN-235 turboprop gunship aircraft. There is no word as to how many of the rockets the RJAF will receive, when deliveries will commence and conclude, or the value of the contract. The sale of 380 APKWS rounds to Saudi Arabia was approved in May this year, with the export of 2000 to Lebanon approved this June. As with the RJAF order, specific contract details have not been released. In November 2014 Iraq requested up to 2000 APKWS rounds under a Foreign Military Sales contract from the United States. Meanwhile, the Australian Army could become the fifth overseas operator having tested APKWS kits on Forges de Zeebrugge FZ90 70mm rockets in firings from an Airbus Helicopters Tiger-ARH gunship

this April, although there is no word yet on when an order to this effect could occur.

I AlTERNATIvES Given Raytheon’s experience with the Paveway laser guided bomb series, its 70mm Talon GC kit must be a strong contender for future Hydra 70 retrofits. In 2008 Raytheon signed an agreement with the Abu Dhabi-based Emirates’ Advanced Investments (EAI) Group to share the weapons’ development, and in September 2014 Talon entered full-rate production under a $117 million contract awarded to Raytheon by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Armed Forces General Headquarters. A media report published on 24 February stated that the Talon rocket would equip the UAE Army. Although not formally revealed, it is expected that these weapons will furnish the Nimr multiple-launch rocket system armoured vehicle variant. The UAE Air Force (UAEAF) is also an operator of the

The Lockheed Martin DAGR (Direct Attack Guided Rocket) is shown during firing trials from a Boeing

AH-64D Apache gunship, in which 16 hits were achieved with 16 firings. The weapon has also been test-launched

from ground platforms © Lockheed Martin

AH-64D and the Talon guidance kit will be used with rockets fired from this aircraft.

In 2014 the Talon was given a US Army airworthiness release for firing from the AH-64E. It has also been fired from the US Army’s Bell OH-58D and MD Helicopters MD-530G armed reconnaissance helicopters. In June 2015, Raytheon announced that Talon firings had been conducted by US Army AH-64D/E helicopters, and it is possible that the US Army may formally acquire the Talon guidance kit for its Hydra 70 rockets at some undisclosed point in the near future.

Lockheed Martin’s DAGR (Direct Attack Guided Rocket) is another strong contender to augment the Hydra 70 rocket. Like Talon, the DAGR uses a nose-mounted GC module, allowing both target lock-on before launch and target lock-on after launch, and has been fired successfully from the US Army’s AH-64D, and Boeing’s A/MH-6X and AH-6I armed reconnaissance helicopters. The DAGR is two-metres (six-feet) long and weighs 36lb (16kg) with a ten pound M151 warhead, increasing in weight to 42lb (19kg) with a 17lb (eight kilogram)

warhead. It has a maximum range of almost four nautical miles (seven kilometres) at sea level, and almost seven nautical miles (twelve kilometres) when launched from 20000ft (6100m). In June 2014, Lockheed Martin announced that it had performed test launches of the

DAGR from its Long Range Surveillance and Attack Vehicle wheeled platform at Eglin airbase, Florida. According to the company, the DAGR rockets scored direct hits on their targets. Although the DAGR has been tested by the US Army, it has not yet been procured en masse by the force.

Illustrated in model form, China’ Aerospace Science and Technology Caihong (Rainbow) CH-3 UAV is being exported with AR-1 air-to-ground laser-homing missiles. Export sales have taken place to four countries, including Nigeria and Pakistan © Roy Braybrook

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According to a company spokesperson, DAGR could migrate to other platforms beyond rotorcraft. “At speeds comparable to helicopters, the DAGR can be integrated on fixed-wing platforms and suitable UAVs. Ultimately, the DAGR can be modified for integration and use on faster platforms.”

Canada’s Magellan Aerospace, meanwhile, offers the 34.6lb (15.7kg) CRV7-PG (Precision Guided) development of its 70mm projectile, and claims the best performance in its class. The company has not published any details regarding which armed forces use these guided rockets.

Elbit Systems’ STAR (Smart Tactical Advanced Rocket) GC module is marketed as a retrofit for both 68mm and 70mm rockets. Although not confirmed by the company, it is assumed that the STAR is now in service with the Israeli Air Force, possibly onboard their AH-64D aircraft. The STAR GC module is used in the Orbital ATK GATR (Guided Advanced Tactical Rocket). This is effectively a new-build weapon, using few components from the legacy Hydra 70. It provides improved accuracy and a range of four nautical miles. In 2013 ATK was awarded a US Special Operations Command contract for GATR to be evaluated on Sikorsky MH-60L/M special forces helicopters of the US Army.

Beyond the $3.2 million contract awarded to Orbital ATK and Elbit Systems by the United States Department of Defence in April 2013 to evaluate this weapon onboard the MH-60L/M, the current status of this programme is unknown.

In 2013 Thales’ test fired its 68mm RPM (Roquette a Precision Metrique/Metric Precision Rocket) from a Tiger-HAP armed reconnaissance helicopter to demonstrate its capabilities to France’s Direction Generale de l’Armament (General Armaments Directorate) defence procurement agency. It has subsequently

collaborated with Airbus Helicopters to integrate the missile on the latter’s Tiger-HAP/HAD armed reconnaissance and attack helicopters. According to reports during this year’s Paris Air Show these helicopters which are in service with the ALAT (Aviation Légère de l’Armée de Terre/French Army Aviation) should receive the RPM from 2020 onwards.

Another completely new laser-guided rocket is Turkey’s Roketsan Cirit (Javelin), developed in response to a Turkish Army requirement to arm its Tusas/AgustaWestland T-129 and Bell AH-1W gunships. The Cirit weighs 33lb (15kg) with a tri-mode warhead, and has a range of four nautical miles. In 2013 Roketsan received a $196 million order for the Cirit from Tawazun on behalf of the UAE Armed Forces. During this year’s International Defence Exhibition in Abu Dhabi it was reported that a five nautical-mile (ten-kilometre) range version of this weapon has been integrated onboard the UAEAF’s Air Tractor AT-802U turboprop counter-insurgency aircraft and its UH-60L/M medium-lift utility helicopters.

I OThER MISSIlESAll laser-guided rockets are restricted to targets within a few degrees of aircraft heading given the field-of-view of the laser illumination of the target, and are limited in range and warhead size due to the size of the weapon and therefore the rocket motor and warhead that it can accommodate. The original advocate of light air-to-ground weapons was the US Air Force Special Operations Command (USAFSOC) whose fixed-wing Lockheed Martin AC-130H/U Spectre/Spooky-II fixed-wing gunships were by the

The ‘Derringer door’ launcher of the USMC’s Lockheed Martin KC-130J Harvest Hawk turboprop tanker/freighter allows the Raytheon AGM/BGM-176A/B Griffin air-to-ground missile to be launched without depressurising the cabin © US DoD

The Textron Fury is an un-powered, fixed-wing derivative of the tube-launched supersonic Thales LMM (Lightweight Multi-Role Missile), derived from the Thales Starstreak short-range air defence weapon © Textron

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late 1990s restricted to low or selected medium surface-to-air threat scenarios by night. These restrictions followed the loss of an AC-130H to an Iraqi Army 9K32 Strela-2 man-portable air defence system during the Battle of Khafji on the Saudi Arabia-Iraq border on 31 January 1991. Their side-firing Rock Island Arsenal M102 105mm howitzers required the aircraft to circle within four nautical miles (eight kilometres) of the target, given the weapon’s range.

In 1997 USAFSOC issued a Lethality Enhancement Operational Requirement Document for its AC-130H/U series, calling for an indirect fire weapon (the Special

Operations Precision Guided Munition) with a reach of 16nm (30km). A 2006 USAFSOC presentation highlighted the tube-launched, 140mm, 44lb (20kg) Northrop Grumman GBU-44B Viper Strike glide weapon with a combined Global Positioning and Inertial Navigation System (GPS/INS) and terminal laser-homing. The GBU-44B now forms part of MBDA’s portfolio, which markets the 42lb (19kg) GBU-44E, developed to allow the USMC’s KC-130J turboprop tanker and freighter to deploy the missile from steep or shallow attack angles, states MBDA. According to an MBDA spokesperson, this weapon is cleared for the KC-130J, although it is not currently deployed to this end.

Operations in Afghanistan saw the USMC take the lead to arm some KC-130Js for persistent reconnaissance missions. For its KC-130J Harvest Hawk upgrade, the USMC also adopted the 33lb (15kg) laser-homing Raytheon AGM-176A Griffin missile, production of which began in 2008, alongside the GBU-44E. The former carries a 13lb (six kilogram) warhead, and has greater range of four nautical miles (eight kilometres) compared to the GBU-44B/E (see above). The AGM-176A was initially launched horizontally aft from a ten-tube ‘Gunslinger’ launcher attached to the loading ramp floor. From 2012 it was instead dropped from a five-round ‘Derringer door’ launcher mounted in a side door, allowing cabin pressurisation to be maintained. This door is reportedly also used on the USAF MC-130W Combat Spear special forces aircraft and AC-130J Ghostrider gunships. The forward-firing BGM-176B Griffin entered production in 2010, and Raytheon delivered its 2000th BGM-176B to the USAF in February 2014. The USAF placed an $86 million order for AGM/BGM-176A/B Griffin weapons in November 2014, followed by a $12 million order in May 2015. The weapon may yet migrate onto other platforms. According to Steven Dickman, programme director of the weapon at Raytheon, “Raytheon recently teamed with Bell-Boeing to demonstrate the BGM-176B firing from the firms’ CV/MV-22B Osprey tilt-rotors of the USAF and USMC in November 2014 and March 2015.” The company is now moving ahead with the AGM/BGM-176A/B Griffin Block-III weapon. “The Block-III is the most current capability upgrade for the Griffin family. It applies to both the AGM-176A (Griffin A) and BGM-176B (Griffin B). Block-III adds an improved Semi-Active Laser (SAL) seeker for better accuracy and performance against fast-moving targets. It also incorporates a Raytheon-designed Multi-Effect Warhead System (MEWS) to increase lethality while retaining Griffin’s low collateral damage advantage,” he said.

The supersonic laser beam-riding 28.7lb (13kg) Thales LMM (Lightweight Multirole Missile) is in production for the Royal Navy’s AgustaWestland AW-159 Wildcat naval support helicopter. In July 2014, AgustaWestland and the United Kingdom Ministry of Defence (MoD) signed a contract worth $153 million to integrate, test and install the LMM onboard the Royal Navy’s AW-159 alongside the MBDA

The Lockheed Martin Shadow Hawk is an air-to-ground glide weapon, shown during a test flight, mounted under the right wing of a Textron Systems/AAI RQ-7B Shadow 200 UAV © Lockheed Martin

The diminutive size of the Raytheon Pyros weapon is illustrated by this photograph of it being installed on the centreline pylon of a 105lb (48kg) Raytheon Cobra UAV. The Pyros illustrates the trend for small, guided munitions © Raytheon

this weapon. One of the lightest weapons under examination in this article is the seven-pound (three kilogram) Orbital ATK Hatchet glide munition which could be used to provide firepower to UAVs. The company revealed at the 2015 IDEX event that it expects this weapon to soon enter service with the special forces communities in the US Navy and USAF, although it demurred on providing a date as to when this could occur. Launched from a tube or rack, the Hatchet has three wings and GPS/INS navigation with SAL or alternative terminal homing.

Regarding future developments in the laser-guided munitions domain armies, navies and air forces around the world will be watching the United States armed forces closely to see what additional purchases of precision-guided air-to-ground weapons they will make in the immediate future. The US is heavily engaged in fighting Islamist insurgents in the Middle East and Africa, and the tools that they bring to this fight, and their success or otherwise, will have a significant bearing on the similar weapons that other armed forces procure to engage ground targets both now and in the future.

Sea Venom/ANL (Anti-Navire Léger/Light Anti-Ship) missile. One month earlier, Thales and the UK MoD signed a contract worth $82 million encompassing the development, qualification and testing of the LMM for the AW-159 helicopters operated by the British Army and Royal Navy. In 2014 Thales unveiled the 13lb (six

kilogram) FreeFall LMM (FF-LMM) glide weapon, which has fixed wings, GPS/INS navigation and Semi-Active Laser (SAL) terminal homing.

Lockheed Martin has developed two glide weapons: the 22lb (10kg) Scorpion and eleven pound (five kilogram) Shadow Hawk. The former weapon is believed to have been used from 2010 for targeted attacks by the US Central Intelligence Agency against Islamist insurgents in Pakistan to minimise collateral damage, according to media reports. In 2012 the Shadow Hawk was tested from a US Army Textron Systems/AAI RQ-7B Shadow-200 UAV. The 13lb (six kilogram) Raytheon Pyros has foldable wings and fins. On 18 July 2014, a live fire test of the Pyros was performed.

Other lightweight weapons include the ten-pound General Dynamics’ 81mm Air-Drop Mortar. In November 2012, the company announced that it had performed a flight test of this weapon from a Navmar Tigershark UAV. During the test, three mortars were launched which landed within seven metres (23 feet) of their GPS-identified target. Apart from this test, no more recent news has emerged regarding

Probably the smallest and lightest of the new generation of air-ground precision guided munitions is the seven-pound (three-kilogram) Orbital ATK Hatchet. It has wrap-around wings and fold-down fins to allow launching from a tube © Orbital ATK

www.kongsberg.com

KONGSBERGKONGSBERG creates and delivers high technology solutions for people that operate under very challenging conditions – on the oceans, in the deep subsea, in defence, in space.


MORTARS

One reason for the relatively limited profile of self-propelled mortars is that crew-served mortars have

long been carried by Armoured Personnel Carriers (APCs) and simply fired through open hatches in the hull. The limitations of such platforms include a limited field of fire, vulnerability of the crew to enemy fire as well as to Nuclear, Biological and Chemical (NBC) contaminants and a lack of an integrated Fire Control System (FCS).

The purpose-designed self-propelled mortar, in contrast, offers a turntable- or turret-mounted weapon that can be traversed through 360 degrees, superior levels of protection for the crew and weapon, and a fully-integrated FCS. Allying a mortar to an armoured vehicle also allows a larger-calibre, invariably 120mm, weapon to be installed. As a result, almost all self-propelled mortars currently marketed are of this calibre. This represents a considerable boost in

Thomas Newdick

While almost all armed forces make use of the indirect-fire capability offered by mortars, the self-propelled mortar remains something of a niche product. This article provides details of the major self-propelled mortar programmes that are currently active along with recent, significant procurements.

The Patria AMV has become a popular platform for adaptation as a self-propelled mortar; here in the form of the Rosomak for the Polish Army.

Poland ordered 690 of these vehicles in 2007, a significant number of which will be delivered in

the Rosomak configuration © HSW

firepower compared to the 81mm and 82mm mortars that were previously standard for infantry support.

I ChInAChinese development of 120mm self-propelled mortars began with the China North Industries Corporation (NORINCO) PLL-05 based on the chassis of the NORINCO WMZ551 six-wheel drive APC, itself a further development of the NORINCO WZ551. The PLL-05 was

MORTARS On The MOve


revealed to the public in October 2009, with at least 50 examples delivered to the People’s Liberation Army. Unveiled in late 2014, the NORINCO CS/SM2 is another 120mm system housed on an eight-wheel drive chassis, and may be the same as the Type 07PA, which was offered by Poly Technologies from 2012, based on the Type 07P eight-wheel drive APC. In 2013, Tanzania became the first export customer for the Type 07PA, with ten delivered by 2014. The People’s Republic of China (PRC) tracked offering is the PLZ-05A, based on the ZBD-08 Infantry Fighting Vehicle (IFV). The PLZ-05A is likely intended for export, where it will compete with the similar Russian Motovilikha2S31 Vena (see below).

I FInlandFinland’s Patria is a leading developer of 120mm self-propelled mortars using wheeled and tracked chassis as well

as maritime applications. The AMOS (Advanced Mortar System) began in 1996 as a Finnish-Swedish joint venture, bringing together Patria and Hägglunds (now BAE Systems). Under the arrangement, Hägglunds provided the turret, armed with a twin 120mm mortar from Patria. Initially developed to meet the requirements of both nations, Sweden later left the initiative. In 2002 Patria received a Finnish development contract worth $5 million for the delivery of a loading system and other technology, including a single complete AMOS mounted on a Patria XA-203 six-wheel drive APC.

In 2010 Finland placed an order for 18 AMOS for delivery from 2013, all of which have now been delivered to the Finnish Defence Forces, with Finland maintaining an option for additional systems. As well as the AMV hull, the AMOS can be installed on the BAE Systems CV90 IFV

(Infantry Fighting Vehicle) series, the Soviet-designed MT-LB tracked APC, BAE Systems M113 tracked APC and the MOWAG Piranha eight-wheel drive APC. As far as Swedish participation is concerned, BAE Systems’Hägglunds subsidiary in Sweden continues to supply the AMOS turret. According to BAE Systems’ spokesperson Mike McCarthy,

“the CV90 is readily capable of being fitted with AMOS and we are in discussions with potential customers.”

Patria has developed the NEMO 120mm self-propelled mortar as a lighter and more compact alternative to the AMOS (see above). Like that system it has been integrated with the company’s AMV hull. First shown in 2005, the Saudi Arabian National Guard (SANG) ordered 724 General Dynamics Light Armoured Vehicles (LAV) for reportedly $110 million in 2011. This purchase included 36 examples equipped with the NEMO Turreted Mortar System (TMS). Deliveries began in 2012 and the manufacturer confirms that 34 systems

The double-barrelled breech-loading AMOS 120mm mortar turret is integrated onboard the Patria AMV (Armoured Maodular Vehicle). This provides a hard-hitting weapon which equips a relatively small-sized chassis, giving significant firepower and deployability © Patria


MORTARS

have been delivered as of 2015, with the remaining two to be delivered by the end of this year. In mid-2012 the NEMO TMS was further developed when it was fitted with a Kongsberg Protector Super Lite remote-controlled weapon station.

Patria’s current sales strategy for the NEMO involves offering the mortar turret for use on a platform specified by the customer, including tracked and wheeled vehicles. According to Patria spokesperson Birgitta Selonen, “Patria does not have any preference for the platform, but naturally we are offering our own eight-wheel drive AMV if the customer does not previously operate this vehicle.”

I FRAnceThales’ TDA division leads French expertise in the field of 120mm mortars since its absorption of the former

Thomson Brandt Armaments. Beginning in 1992 the latter developed the 2R2M 120mm mortar, and a first complete prototype was shown in 1994. This weapon is offered for integration on the Piranha APC and the Turkish FNSS Armoured Infantry Fighting Vehicle (AIFV), with the latter combination undergoing trials in Turkey. Italy has selected the 2R2M for installation on the Iveco/OTO Melara Freccia eight-wheel drive APC and Iveco/OTO Melara Dardo tracked IFV, for prototype trials.

In 2008, Oman placed a contract for six 2R2M mortars for installation on Renault VABs (Véhicule de l’Avant Blindé/Armoured Vanguard Vehicle) four-wheel drive APCs already in use. In the same year Malaysia ordered eight FNSS Armoured Combat Vehicle–Stretched (ACV-S) to be fitted with the 2R2M under a deal worth

$19 million. A separate Malaysian contract covers 257 FNSS Pars eight-wheel drive APCs to be supplied by local company DEFTECH, of which eight are fitted with 2R2M mortars. Deliveries were completed in 2011. Between 2009 and 2010, Saudi Arabia received 25 2R2M mortars for use on upgraded SANG M113s.

I JApAnIn the early 1990s Japan developed the Komatsu Type 96 self-propelled mortar. Although the records of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) note that 448 mortars had been delivered to Japan by 2014, only around 40 examples of the Type 96 were thought to be in service, the remaining mortars being operated in towed form. The Type 96 is armed with a 120mm TDA mortar produced under licence in Japan. Further development of the TDA 120mm mortar has yielded the RS2M smoothbore version and the remote-controlled Dragon Fire

The BAE Systems Armoured Multi-Purpose Vehicle (AMPV) has been selected as the US Army’s M113 replacement and will include a mortar version. The volume of AMPVs expected to be ordered by the US DoD could trigger significant export interest © BAE Systems

version for the US Marine Corps. Under the Expeditionary Fire Support System (EFSS) programme, the US Marine Corps received 66 120mm mortars from TDA between 2008-13, for installation in the M327 towed mortar system and the weapon has been adapted for carriage in the General Dynamics’ Light Armoured Vehicle (LAV-EFSS).

I GermanyThe Heer (Germany Army’s) current 120mm self-propelled mortar was originally developed by MaK System GmbH, now Rheinmetall. This uses the Wiesel-2 tracked fighting vehicle as its basis, the mortar itself being furnished by Rheinmetall. A first proof-of-concept prototype was completed in 1992 and the German armed forces ordered two examples, delivered for trials in 2004. In 2009 a production contract was placed for eight vehicles, worth $60 million.

I IsraelIn Israel, 120mm mortars are the

preserve of Elbit Systems following its absorption of Soltam in 2010. Self-

propelled offerings include the Advanced Deployable Autonomous Mortar System (ADAMS). In 2005 a 120mm Soltam mortar was mounted on an AM General High Mobility Multi-Purpose Wheeled Vehicle (a.k.a ‘Humvee’) four-wheel drive chassis as a private venture. The Humvee mounted the Computerised Autonomous Recoil Rapid Deployed Outrange Mortar (CARDOM). The CARDOM is built for the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) for use on the M113 and is also installed on a version of the General Dynamics Stryker eight-wheel drive APC in US Army service, known as the M1129. A total of 453 CARDOM systems were provided for the US Army Stryker Brigade Combat Teams between 2002 and 2010. In Israeli service the M113-based 120mm mortar is known as the Keshet (Rainbow). An earlier version of the Soltam 120mm mortar is used by the US Army on the M1064A3 (see below).

Recent export customers for the CARDOM include Cameroon, which acquired eight systems mounted on a Mercedes-Benz four-wheel drive cross-country truck chassis. The CARDOM was

The Patria AMOS (Advanced Mortar System) is a self-propelled mortar. Here it undergoes a winter firing campaign in Finland. A total of 18 of these systems have been delivered to equip the Finnish Defence Forces © BAE Systems


MORTARS

integrated on the Soviet-designed BMP-1 tracked IFV for an undisclosed customer, and deliveries are reported to have begun. The client in question may be Azerbaijan, which acquired ten CARDOM systems for a self-propelled application in 2008. In 2007,

Kazakhstan signed a $120-million deal in which 28 earlier 2B11 mortars were rebuilt to CARDOM standard for use on MT-LB tracked APCs under the Kazakh designation Aybat. These were delivered between 2008 and 2009. Portugal has 33 120mm CARDOM

systems, delivered between 2008-11. Finally, Uganda bought 18 CARDOM systems for a self-propelled application, delivered in 2009.

I POlAndIn Poland, Huta Stalowa Wola has developed the Rak family of wheeled and tracked 120mm self-propelled mortars, primarily to meet local military requirements. A Polish development contract was awarded in 2007, and saw completion of two turrets, one for tracked and one for wheeled vehicles. The initial wheeled option is the Patria AMV hull, 690 of which were ordered by Poland, with deliveries from 2007, under the name Rosomak (Wolverine).

Poland has outlined a requirement for an initial twelve to 16 units, and could ultimately procure as many as 64 on the Rosomak and 32 on tracked hulls, if funding permits. As of today, the Huta Stalowa Wola 120mm self-propelled mortar system remains under Polish defence ministry financing. Company spokesperson Bartosz Kopyto says “there is more than significant export interest,” but admits that the company “first has to address the domestic market.”

I RuSSIARussia has been a long-term advocate of self-propelled mortars, pioneering their development during the Soviet era. In terms of 120mm weapons, the Cold War-era 2S9 Nona-S on a BTR-D tracked chassis was first identified in 1985. Although no longer marketed, export of this system to the PRC by Ukraine has been confirmed. It is likely that once in the PRC, the three systems in question were used to inform development of indigenous self-propelled mortars (see above). The Nona range has been expanded since the 1990s, yielding the 2S23 Nona-SVK on a BTR-80 eight-wheel drive APC chassis. The Nona-SVK is in limited Russian use, with around 50 examples equipping the Russian Army and Naval Infantry. The only confirmed export customer is Venezuela, which received 13 Nona-SVKs in 2011.

The successor to the Nona is the Vena, which was launched with the 2S31 Vena on a modified BMP-3 chassis. While Kurganmashzavod provides the hull, the mortar is a product of Motovilikha. The first export customer is Azerbaijan which acquired 18 examples with deliveries occurring between 2012-14. The 2S31 Vena is also expected to be integrated

A mortar round is fired from the Patria NEMO 120mm system. This weapon is being integrated onto the same company’s Armoured Modular Vehicle (AMV). The AMV is able to accommodate both the NEMO 120mm and AMOS 120mm turret © Patria

with the Russian Army’s new-generation Kurganmashzavod Kurganets-25 tracked armoured vehicle family expected to enter production in 2017.

I SIngaporeST Kinetics (STK) of Singapore developed the Super Rapid Advanced Mortar System (SRAMS) as a private venture. First revealed in 2001, development of the SRAMS was completed in 2006 Compared to other 120mm self-propelled mortars, the SRAMS is optimised for lighter platforms, such as the HMMWV and the STK Bronco All Terrain Tracked Carrier (ATTC). The latter application has been integrated with the SRAMS for Singapore.

Meanwhile, development of the Agrab self-propelled mortar which uses the SRAMS was launched in 2006 by the International Golden Group (IGG) of the UAE. After trials of the Agrab Mk.1 in 2011 IGG was awarded a $320-million contract for 72 Agrab Mk.2s for the UAE. Whereas the Agrab Mk.1 utilised a BAE Systems RG31 Mk.5 four-wheel drive hull, the Agrab Mk.2 uses the improved RG31 Mk.6E hull and incorporates an enhanced

As a complement to the Rak 120mm mortar on a wheeled chassis, Huta Stalowa Wola has developed a version on the Soviet-designed 2S1 tracked howitzer chassis. A development contract for the Polish military to develop the tracked version of the Rak 120mm mortar was awarded in 2007 © HSW


MORTARS

Thales FCS. According to SIPRI data another undisclosed customer ordered 25 SRAMS for delivery between 2013-14 in a deal worth $46 million.

I SwITzeRlAndIn Switzerland, RUAG now offers its Cobra 120mm mortar, which was unveiled earlier this year. The Cobra is a modular system intended for integration with various platforms, and the company is hopeful that it will be selected to meet a Swiss military requirement for a mechanised 120mm mortar. After initial integration on the Piranha-II, RUAG will work to adapt the system for carriage by the Piranha-III and M113.

I UnITed STATeSBAE Systems has taken the lead in the integration of new-generation self-propelled mortars for the US Army. In December 2014 the force awarded BAE Systems a contract for the Engineering, Manufacturing and Development phase for the Armoured Multi-Purpose Vehicle (AMPV), with an option for the Low-

Rate Initial Production (LRIP) phase. The cumulative value of the contract is $1.2 billion. The AMPV is intended to replace the M113 family of vehicles and a variant of the AMPV will be capable of carrying a 120mm mortar, thus replacing the M1064 (see above). BAE Systems is responsible for the vehicles that carry the mortars and will integrate the 120mm mortar and FCS once these are selected.

The definitive version of the US Army’s previous-generation M1064 is the M1064A3, based on a late-production M113A3 hull. This is armed with a Soltam 120mm mortar. Examples of the M1064 have been delivered to Israel in three separate batches in 2007, 2008 and 2009. Amounting to at least 210 vehicles, these were likely delivered without mortars, with the weapons to be fitted by Soltam once in Israel. New-build systems were last ordered by Thailand in 1995, which acquired 82 M113s including twelve provided as M1064A3 self-propelled mortars.

As illustrated by the CARDOM and SRAMS, improved recoil systems now allow hard-hitting 120mm systems to

be mounted on much lighter chassis than was previously the case; as such, they are now offered on high-mobility truck or ‘Humvee’-type chassis. These, and self-propelled mortars in general, provide a good fit with the requirements of modern rapid reaction forces, calling as they do for lighter and more easily transportable vehicles and weapon platforms. As long as militaries remain wedded to these concepts, there will be interest in 120mm self-propelled mortars as a means of providing highly mobile indirect fire. Other notable trends evident in recent acquisitions are conversions of earlier fighting vehicles, such as the M113, 2S1 and MT-LB to accommodate mortars. With the current trend towards turret-mounted mortars, the potential for adapting existing fighting vehicles to become ‘quick fix’ artillery is significant. Finally, with the US Army beginning the mammoth task of replacing its M113s, the AMPV looks set to win significant orders from the Pentagon, likely leading to export sales too.

The Rak 120mm mortar equipping the Rosomak eight-wheel drive APC chassis is compatible with all available types of 120mm smoothbore ammunition. Poland is expected to eventually procure up to 64 of these platforms © HSW


MARITIME

Naval surveillance radars have increasing levels of functionality. The high performance surface and air target detection and tracking capabilities of radars equipping major surface combatants are now migrating to smaller vessels, deepening their situational awareness.

Before discussing recent programme developments regarding naval surveillance radars, a short technical discussion will help

to put these developments in context. Naval surveillance radars typically inhabit two distinct parts of the electromagnetic spectrum. Several systems discussed

Thomas Withington

SEA ChANgETerma’s SCANTER 4100 radar equips the ‘Knud Rasmussen’ class Offshore Patrol Vessels of the Royal Danish Navy. Towards the end of 2014 the SCANTER 4103 variant was selected to equip the final three ‘River’ class OPVs of the Royal Navy © Terma

below operate in S-band (2.3-2.5/2.7-3.7 Gigahertz/GHz). S-band radars typically have an antenna which can be comfortably housed on a vessel’s topside without adversely affecting sea-keeping. Such radars are also more resistant to atmospheric attenuation, a process by which a proportion of the radar’s

transmitted Radio Frequency (RF) energy is absorbed by moisture in the air. This can affect a radar’s efficiency as the attenuation can weaken the strength of returned RF echoes from a target, and cause ‘clutter’: a myriad of false radar returns on the radar operator’s display which risks masking the actual target of interest. S-band remains


the Lockheed Martin AN/SPY-1D(V) radar onboard today’s ‘Arleigh Burke’ class destroyers.

Elsewhere in the US Navy, the service will outfit the future ‘Gerald R. Ford’ aircraft carriers with the Enterprise Air Surveillance Radar (EASR) as opposed to the Dual Band Radar (DBR) originally earmarked for these vessels. The US Navy announced this decision via a press release in March. The DBR was originally planned for the entirety of the class (a total of three ships) and was to include Raytheon’s AN/SPY-3 X-band multi-function radar with the AN/SPY-4 S-band volume search radars. The DBR was also to equip the three-vessel strong US Navy’s

‘Zumwalt’ destroyer class. Yet in 2010 the

navy decided to only employ the AN/SPY-3 onboard the ‘Zumwalt’ class. As such, the USS Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier, the lead ship in the class expected to be commissioned in 2016, will be the only US Navy ship to carry the full AN/SPY-3/4 complement.

Rear Admiral Thomas J. Moore, the US Navy’s aircraft carrier programme executive officer, publicly stated in March that the decision had been taken to confine the AN/SPY-3/4 fit to the one aircraft carrier, as the remaining ships in the class, the USS Enterprise and the USS John F. Kennedy, will not require the full suite of capabilities offered by the AN/SPY-3/4 combination.

The EASR will be a completely new radar. Both Northrop Grumman and

a favourite choice for long-range, high-altitude air surveillance.

X-band (8.5-10.68GHz) meanwhile is also popular choice in the naval radar domain. Given its comparatively shorter bandwidth vis-à-vis S-band it can see targets in sharp detail, although this can be at the expense of range, depending on transmit power and antenna size. The ‘trade off ’ regarding its performance is that X-band radars can suffer from atmospheric attenuation (see above). Finally, some naval radars operate in the C-band (5.25-5.925GHz) which represents a compromise between S-band and X-band, giving a good surveillance range, plus the ability to detect low-altitude targets and to suppress clutter.

I AMDRRaytheon’s AN/SPY-6(V) Air and Missile Defence (AMDR) radar was selected by the United States Navy in October 2014 to equip its ‘Arleigh Burke’ class Flight-III series destroyers, the first of which is to be procured in 2016. The AMDR is comprised of a suite of radars: an S-band radar performing integrated air and missile defence to augment horizon search and surface warfare.

In mid-May, the US Navy announced the completion of the critical design review for the AN/SPY-6(V). Raytheon now continues moving forward with the Engineering Manufacturing and Development (EMD) phase. The EMD in fact commenced in late-2013. According to Tad Dickenson, the company’s AN/SPY-6(V) programme manager, the EMD is now “more than 40 percent complete” and a development test phase will be performed by the end of this year to verify the radar’s hardware design. As part of the EMD, a complete AN/SPY-6(V) array will be constructed, and then shipped to the US Navy’s Pacific Missile Range facility in Hawaii in March 2016. Mr. Dickenson continues that in late 2016 the company will initiate a systems verification development test that is expected to be completed by mid-2017. The first AN/SPY-6(V) radar is expected to be delivered to the US Navy for installation on the first

‘Arleigh Burke’ class Flight-III vessel by the end of 2019. Delivery frequencies are expected to be two ship systems annually. Neither the US Navy nor Raytheon have published any performance statistics for the radar, although the AMDR will provide greater detection ranges and increased discrimination accuracy compared to

Raytheon’s AN/APY-6(V) Air and Missile Defence Radar is equipping the United

States Navy’s ‘Arleigh Burke’ class Flight-III destroyers. The AN/APY-6(V) ensemble

includes both an S-band and X-band radar © Raytheon


MARITIME

Raytheon were awarded the EASR study and demonstration contracts in November 2013 and June 2014. Regarding the design of the radar, the US Navy’s EMD pre-solicitation notice, published 22 April, stipulates that two radar variants are to be developed, one using a fixed panel array, and the other employing a rotating antenna. Both will provide air traffic management and general vessel situational awareness.

I LCSSince the end of the Second World War, the US Navy and US Coast Guard naval surveillance radar market has largely been a closed shop to non-US suppliers. Matters are now changing, with the US Navy reaching out to European vendors for new radars to equip the service’s two classes of Littoral Combat Ship (LCS).

Saab is supplying its C-band (5.25-5.925GHz) Sea Giraffe AMB (see below) nava surveillance radar for the ‘Independence’ class LCS, locally designated as the AN/SPS-77. With a range of circa 97 nautical miles (180 kilometres) and the ability to track 200

air and 400 surface targets, the company told the author that, to date, ten AN/SPS-77 radars have been delivered to Austral which is building the ‘Independence’ class. The number of additional deliveries that Saab will perform, the company added, depends on the number of additional ‘Independence’ class LCSs the US Navy orders, beyond the ten ordered so far.

Meanwhile, Airbus Defence and Space’s TRS-3D C-band radar (US Navy designation is AN/SPS-75) has been ordered for Lockheed Martin’s ‘Freedom’ class LCS. Installation of the TRS-3D, which has a range of circa 97nm, onboard the USS Detriot, the fourth ship in the class, was performed in March 2015. The company’s TRS-4D C-band radar, which has an increased range of 135nm (250km), will be delivered for the USS Indianapolis and all future ‘Freedom’ class ships. The first of the TRS-4D radars will be delivered in 2016, following customer acceptance scheduled for the end of 2015. In all, the TRS-3D will equip eight

‘Freedom’ class LCSs from the USS Freedom, up to the USS Billings (the eighth ship in the class), plus one additional test system to be installed on a US Navy test ship. The balance of four ships, the USS Indianapolis and the USS St. Louis plus an additional two unnamed vessels, will carry the TRS-4D. Airbus Defence and Space says that there are currently no plans to retrofit ‘Freedom’ class ships earmarked for and equipped with the AN/SPS-75 with the TRS-4D.

Saab has three distinct products in its naval radar portfolio: the Sea Giraffe AMB, Sea Giraffe-1X and Sea Giraffe-4A. In terms of architecture, the Sea Giraffe AMB uses a Passive Electronically Scanned Array (PESA) as the radar’s RF transmission is generated at a single source, although split into pencil beams at the antenna. The radar has three ‘flavours’, namely the Mod.A, Mod.B and Mod.C. According to Pontus Djerf, senior director and head of product marketing and sales at Saab’s surface radar solutions business, the Mod.C is the latest version of the radar with an

“increased dynamic range (compared to the Mod.A/B versions) and is capable of

detecting targets with a comparatively small Radar Cross Section compared to the previous versions. This allows the detection of rocket, artillery and mortar threats.” In terms of the Sea Giraffe AMB Mod.A/B versions, the principal differences concern the number of transmitted ‘pencil beams’, with four and 14 stacked beams respectively. Increasing the number of stacked beams on the Mod.B increases the clarity and detail with which targets can be detected.

I STAR PowERWhile Saab’s Sea Giraffe AMB family uses PESA architecture, Israel Aerospace Industries’ (IAI) Elta division’s EL/M-2248 MF-STAR (Multi-Function Surveillance, Track and Guidance Radar) uses AESA architecture. This radar can perform both air and surface surveillance, alongside fire control for Surface-to-Air Missiles (SAMs), minimising the number of dedicated radars that a warship must accommodate. The EL/M-2248 is an S-band system with a published range of 135nm (250km) for the detection of aircraft at high altitude, with sea-skimming targets such as anti-ship missiles being detected at circa 13.5nm (250km). IAI Elta is traditionally coy regarding customers, however, it is known that the EL/M-2248 is installed

surveillance radars are equipping the ‘Freedom’ class Littoral Combat Ships of the United States Navy. They are locally designated as the AN/SPS-75 © Airbus Defence and Space

The ‘Baynunnah’ class corvettes of the United Arab Emirates Navy are equipped with Saab’s Sea Giraffe AMB radar housed in the cone-like structure at the top of this picture © Thomas Withington


Second Generation Patrol Vessels (SGPV/also known as the Littoral Combat Ship), six of which open sources say will be acquired. According to Hamzah Akhbar, Kelvin Hughes regional sales manager, deliveries to equip these vessels will start in 2016 and conclude in 2020.

Malaysia’s Indonesian neighbour has received Terma’s SCANTER 4103 X-band naval surveillance radar to equip the Tentara Nasional Indonesia-Angkatan Laut (Indonesian Navy’s) KRI Fatahillah corvette of the same class, the installation of which was completed in March 2014. Furthermore, the SCANTER 4103 was selected in late 2014 to equip the last three

‘River’ class OPVs of the Royal Navy, the delivery of the first radar is scheduled for 2016. The SCANTER 4100 family, of which the SCANTER 4103 is a member, can perform two-dimensional (velocity and bearing) air target detection at a range of circa 90nm (167km).

In separate developments, Kelvin Hughes is equipping the Royal New Zealand Navy’s HMNZS Te Kaha and HMNZS Te Mana ‘ANZAC’ class frigates with S-band SharpEye variants to be delivered from 2016, according to media reports. Each ship will be outfitted with two of these 48nm (89km) range radars. It is noteworthy that the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), the other ‘ANZAC’ class operator, is receiving CEA Technologies’ CEAFAR and CEAMOUNT S- and X-band radars. These radars are being delivered as a key component of the RAN’s ‘ANZAC’ class upgrade programme, with final radar deliveries occurring by the end of 2016, according to the company. This will complete the upgrade of all eight of the RAN’s ‘ANZAC’ class ships.

The two SharpEye Mk.11 Lightweight Turning Units per vessel are not the only radars to be installed onboard the TLDM’s SGPVs (see above). Thales will install its SMART-S Mk.2 S-band surveillance radar on these ships. With a surveillance range of 130nm (250km), this radar can track up to 500 surface and air targets, with sharp capabilities against anti-ship missiles which can be detected at 27nm (50km).

Thales unveiled its Sea Fire 500 circa 216nm (400km) range naval surveillance radar at the 2014 Euronaval exhibition in Paris. Designed to outfit vessels displacing between 3500-7000 tonnes, the radar has a modular design, retaining the same back end, but changing the antenna size according to the ship it equips. A

Thales SMART-L radar, the large dark monolithic structure on the right-hand side of this picture, is receiving an enhancement to improve its ballistic missile detection capabilities © Thomas Withington

onboard the Israeli Navy’s three ‘Sa’ar-5’ corvettes, the three ships comprising the Indian Navy’s ‘Kolkata’ class of frigate and also the same service’s forthcoming INS Vikrant aircraft carrier.

Whereas the EL/M-2248 uses four fixed panel AESAs to provide 360 degree azimuth surveillance, the S-band EL/M-2258 ALPHA (Advanced Lightweight Phased Array) uses a rotating antenna and has a range of 65nm (120km). In October 2012, it was reported that this radar equips the Israeli Navy’s eight ‘Sa’ar-4.5’ class missile boats.

Israeli ingenuity has seen the company migrate elements of its EL/M-2248 radar onto its new EL/M-2222S NAV-GUARD radar. Launched in 2014 and designed for short-range self-defence it has a range of four nautical miles (seven kilometres), providing 360 degrees of azimuth using four AESAs. The EL/M-2222S can be teamed with Rheinmetall’s Multi-Ammunition Softkill System (MASS) which uses infrared, ultraviolet and chaff decoys to provide protection against heat-seeking and radar-guided weapons.

I MInIaturIsatIonThe surveillance functionality which has been the preserve of large vessels able to

house the antennae and electronic cabinets necessary for radars to perform large volume searches for air and surface targets is migrating to smaller vessels. This is a direct result of the ongoing miniaturisation of electronics enabling an increasing number of functions to be performed on circuits of decreasing size.

I asIa advancIngKelvin Hughes was also present at IMDEX where the company showcased its SharpEye Mk.11 Lightweight Turning Unit which can house either the X-band or S-band version of the firm’s SharpEye maritime surveillance radar. The SharpEye Mk.11 Lightweight Turning Unit contains the radar’s solid-state transceiver and the carbon fibre housing construction is highly angular to help reduce a ships’ overall Radar Cross Section. The unit itself imposes a 74 kilogram (163lb) weight penalty which includes the radar’s antenna. Kelvin Hughes launched this product in 2013 and orders have been forthcoming from the Tentera Laut DiRaja Malaysia (TLDM/Royal Malaysian Navy) which is acquiring two units per ship, with each carrying an X-band and S-band antenna respectively. These will equip the TLDM’s


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larger vessel can accommodate a larger antenna, with a larger antenna affording improvements in target resolution and detection range. The company says that the radar’s capabilities can be upgraded throughout its life using a software-only approach. As of 2015, the radar remains in development, according to the company, with production expected to commence in 2019 and deliveries in 2020, although Thales remains coy on possible customers.

I GoInG BAllIsTIcAside from the Sea Fire 500, the capabilities of Thales’ SMART-L L-band (1.215-1.4GHz) radar is being enhanced to improve its ballistic missile detection capabilities. In its unmodified configuration, the radar has a surveillance range of 216nm (400km), according to the firm, although a software modification for its signal processing extends this to 324nm (600km) when the radar uses a PESA (see above). This can be extended still further to 810nm (1500km)

and to 1080nm (2000km) if the antenna remains stationary, or if it is rotating via the addition of the software upgrade and an AESA. The Koninklijke Marine (Royal Netherlands Navy) is performing the latter software and hardware upgrade for the SMART-L radars outfitting its four ‘De Zeven Provinciën’ class frigates. The work commenced in 2012, and Thales expects installation of the first upgraded radars on these Dutch ships to start in 2017.

Kelvin Hughes’ SharpEye naval surveillance radar has been

modified with the addition of the SharpEye Mk.11 Lightweight

Turning Unit. Two of these radars will equip each of the

Royal Malaysian Navy’s forthcoming Second GenerationPatrol Vessels © Kelvin Hughes

BAE Systems’ Type-997/ARTISAN radar is being retrofitted across the Royal Navy’s ‘Duke’ class frigates. It will also equip the Senior Service’s forthcoming Global Combat Ships © BAE Systems

I sEnIoR sERvIcEBAE Systems has a number of naval surveillance radar offerings including its S-band, 59nm (110km range Type-994/ AWS-4 radar. According to Dominic Morley, the company’s international business development manager for naval radars, the firm is developing a ballistic missile detection and surveillance mode for the Type-1045/Sampson S-band radars used by the Senior Service’s ‘Daring’ class destroyers. Presently, these radars have a range of up to 216nm (400km). Although not confirmed by BAE Systems, the upgrade of the Type-1045/Sampson radars to this end could see its

Exelis AN/SPS-48 radar family is used extensively across many US Navy platforms, including its ‘Nimitz’ class aircraft carriers. These radars are currently being overhauled via the Radar Obsolescence and Availability Recovery programme © Exelis

detection range increased. Regarding the Type-997/ARTISAN (Advanced Radar Target Indication Situational Awareness and Navigation) radars which are equipping the Royal Navy’s ‘Duke’ class frigates, the radar is currently being qualified to work with the MBDA Sea Ceptor SAM which will replace that company’s Sea Wolf SAMs currently used by the ‘Duke’ classfrom 2016. The Type-997/ARTISAN is also equipping the Royal Navy’s forthcoming Global Combat Ship (GCS). Deliveries of the Type-997/ARTISAN to equip the GCS will continue during the life of the GCS programme, Mr. Morley states. For more information regarding the GCS programme, please see Luca Peruzzi’s ‘Britannia Cools the Waves’ article in this issue.

During the next five-to-ten years, there are many areas where naval surveillance radar technology could be enhanced. Radars will become increasingly ‘smart’ sensing the nature of the tasks a ship is undertaking, and adapting themselves accordingly. “We expect that increasingly software-based radars will provide the flexibility to configure ships to a particular mission and adapt to its environment,” Mr. Morley argues.

Hardware is set to improve. A glimpse of this is seen by the increasing adoption in the radar domain of Gallium Nitride used by the AN/APY-6(V) for example (see above) as a replacement for Gallium Arsenide (GaS) in radar circuitry, which offers higher operating temperatures and hence higher performance compared to existing GaS designs. GaN still remains comparatively expensive, yet the more radar manufacturers adopt this material, the less expensive it should become.

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2015 marks the fortieth anniversary of the first use in combat of an Anti-Radiation Missile (ARM). Interest in the weapons is high, with legacy designs experiencing a make-over and new products entering the market place.

Thomas Withington

Designed to home in on the transmissions of hostile ground-based air surveillance radars, the Texas Instruments AGM-

45A/B family of air-to-surface ARMs received its combat debut courtesy of United States’ Navy (USN) McDonnell Douglas A-4A/B/C Skyhawk Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MRCA) during the United States’ involvement in the Vietnam War between 1965 and 1975. The weapon was designed to intercept Soviet Fan Song S-band and C-band (2.3-2.5/2.7-3.7 gigahertz/GHz and 5.25-5.925GHz) ground-based target tracking and fire control radars accompanying the S-75 Dvina high-altitude

ARMs RACE

The US Navy is taking delivery of the Orbital ATK AGM-88E Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile. The weapon is seen here being test-launched from a McDonnell Douglas/Boeing F/A-18D Hornet multi-role combat aircraft © US Navy

Surface-to-Air Missile (SAM) systems supplied to the North Vietnamese Air Force (NVAF) from April 1965.

An S-75 Dvina claimed its first victim, a United States Air Force (USAF) McDonnell Douglas F-4C Phantom air superiority fighter, on 24 July 1965. The response of the United States military was to launch Operation IRON HAND, a combined USAF and USN initiative intended to degrade and destroy NVAF ground-based air defences. The first strike to this end would be performed on 7 October 1965 when four A-4Es from the USS Independence ‘Forrestal’ class aircraft carrier located and destroyed an S-75

site at Kép airbase, northwest of the then capital of North Vietnam, Hanoi.

ARM development has continued since the utilisation of the AGM-45A/B during the Vietnam War. Arguably the most famous ARM is Raytheon’s AGM-88D/F High-Speed Anti-Radiation Missile, better known as the ‘HARM’. Since 1965, the AGM-45A/B had been the mainstay of the USAF and USN ARM capability, alongside the General Dynamics AGM-78 Standard ARM, which had entered USAF/USN service in 1968. However, on 24 March 1986, the Texas Instruments (now Raytheon) AGM-88A was used for the first time in combat against a Libyan Air


seeker which could be reprogrammed to home in on new radar threats as and when discovered. The AGM-88B, in production from 1987 improved the missile’s computer hardware, and included the AGM-88A Block-II RF seeker. An upgrade to the AGM-88B occurred in 1990, re-designating the weapon as the AGM-88B Block-III. From 1993, the AGM-88C became operational which overhauled the weapon’s explosive charge, adding 12800 tungsten alloy fragments to ruin a radar antenna’s day, along with improvements to the weapon’s guidance system and ability to attack targets of opportunity; the latter improvement took the form of the AGM-88C Block-IV software upgrade. Further software improvements adorned the AGM-88C Block-V/AGM-88B Block-III (see above) upgrade.

Despite being almost three decades since its first use in combat (see above), the AGM-88 family shows no signs of obsolescence. The latest upgrade of the missile sees it re-designated as the AGM-88F. This initiative takes existing AGM-88C Block-IV missiles and adds the ability to strike targets according to their GPS (Global Positioning System) coordinates via the insertion of the HARM Control Section Modification (HCSM) package. The addition of GPS enables the missile

to counter the so-called ‘shut down’ tactic where a radar operator detecting an incoming ARM homing in on their RF transmissions deactivates their radar transmissions so as to cause the missile to lose its target lock. The addition of GPS

“enables the weapon to strike targets which are not emitting,” says Dewey Holmes, Raytheon’s HARM programme manager. Moreover, the missile can be programmed with GPS coordinates to indicate areas through which it is not permitted to fly, with these GPS coordinates inserted into the missile prior to launch, Mr. Holmes continues. Setting geographical parameters for the missile will help to reduce collateral damage. On 28 April 1999, during Operation ALLIED FORCE, the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation’s (NATO) air campaign to expel Serbian military and Special Police units from the Balkans province of Kosovo, an AGM-88 of an unknown variant, reportedly hit a house in the suburbs of the Bulgarian capital Sofia, fortunately causing no injuries. The missile had been targeted against a Serbian Air Force and Air Defence force ground-based surveillance radar of an unknown type.

Raytheon declined to provide any details as to whether the RF seeker of the AGM-88F has received any improvements.

Entering service in the mid-1980s, and used in anger for the first time on 24 March 1986, Raytheon’s AGM-88 family of High-Speed Anti-Radiation Missiles already has several years of combat experience under its belt © US Navy

Force Soviet-supplied 5N62 Square Pair target acquisition and fire control radar accompanying an NPO Almaz S-200 Angara long-range SAM system located on the coast of the Gulf of Sidra, on the southern Mediterranean Sea. The AGM-88A was a qualitative improvement on the AGM-45A/B and AGM-78. Whereas the AGM-45A/B and AGM-78 had respective ranges of 22nm (40km) and 49nm (90km), the AGM-88A could reach targets at 80nm (150km) range.

Since its combat debut, the AGM-88A has been continually redeveloped through several variants. The AGM-88A Block-II added a Radio Frequency (RF)


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Although it would be surprising if it has not. The United States and allied militaries face emerging ground-to-air threats in the form of the Russian Almaz-Antey S-300VM and S-400 Triumf high-altitude SAM system and the China Precision Machinery Import-Export Corporation HQ-9 medium-to-high altitude SAM system, all of which use a myriad of radars yet to be encountered in combat.

The AGM-88F upgrade is being performed for the USAF which employs the AGM-88C Block-IV onboard its Lockheed Martin F-16CJ Viper Weasel SEAD (Suppression of Enemy Air Defence) aircraft equipped with the Texas Instruments (now Raytheon) AN/ASQ-213A/R7 HARM Targeting System (HTS). The AN/ASQ-213R7 version of the ‘vanilla’ AN/ASQ-213A HTS adds the capability to use ‘dumb’ bombs with weapons-mounted precision guidance equipment such as Boeing’s GBU-31/32/35/38/54 Joint Direct Attack Munition kits. The AN/ASQ-213R7 has a GPS receiver to this end which supply coordinates to these munitions and also, presumably, to the AGM-88F, alongside its traditional

role of detecting hostile ground-based air surveillance radar transmissions and providing fire control for the ARM. By 2010, all USAF AN/ASQ-213A pods had been upgraded to AN/ASQ-213R7 status.

Raytheon received a contract for the Full Rate Production (FRP) of the AGM-88F in November 2012 worth $12.3 million, with a second FPR contract worth $14 million awarded in June 2013. Deliveries of these missiles produced under these two FRP contracts commenced in the second quarter of 2014, according to Mr. Holmes, and will conclude by the end of this year. Before the end of 2015, a final AGM-88F flight test is expected to be performed at the USAF Utah Test and Training Range in the western United States. Only the USAF is receiving the AGM-88F, although Mr. Holmes concedes that there has been some interest in the weapon from undisclosed foreign militaries. Additional upgrades may yet occur, particularly to extend the missiles’ range to an undisclosed distance, Mr. Holmes adds, with the USAF planning to maintain the missile in service until around 2035.

I AARGMThe United States’ other AGM-88 family user is the USN. This service is pursuing its own AGM-88B/C enhancement in form of the AGM-88E Advanced, Anti-Radiation Guided Missile (AARGM). Orbital ATK is leading this initiative. The missile will outfit the Aeronautica Militaire (Italian Air Force) Panavia Tornado-ECR SEAD aircraft (for which the company says the missile will reach Initial Operational Capability in 2016) and in US service, the AGM-88E outfits the McDonnell Douglas/Boeing F/A-18C/D Hornet and Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MRCA), and Boeing E/A-18G Growler electronic warfare platforms used by the USN and US Marine Corps. Bill Kasting, vice president and general manager of Orbital ATK’s defence electronic systems group, says that the AGM-88E is being certified by the USN at the time of writing (mid-June 2015) for its E/A-18G aircraft. The company notes that the weapon is also designed to equip General Dynamics/Lockheed Martin F-16 and McDonnell Douglas/Boeing F-15 family Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MRCA).

While the US Navy is taking delivery of the AGM-88E weapon, the US Air Force is receiving the Raytheon AGM-88F missiles equipped with the HARM Control Section Modification designed to counter the radar ‘shut down’ tactic © USAF

The AGM-88E uses the existing motor and airframe of the AGM-88B/C, but adds a new guidance system, plus enhanced control systems. Regarding the guidance system, it contains a millimetre wave radar which is an used to identify and terminally guide on the RF target even if it is shut down. Another counter ‘shut down’ tactic

is the addition of a GPS receiver to the weapon, alongside its RF seeker, to enhance accuracy and to neutralise the shut down tactic. Updated target information can be transmitted from the launching aircraft to the AGM-88E via the missiles’ Integrated Broadcast System Receiver. One important aspect of the AGM-88E is that it does

Anti-Radiation Missiles (ARM) are now a staple of modern air operations since their combat debut during the US involvement in the Vietnam War. This picture shows a radar’s last few moments as it is attacked by an ARM © US DoD

not require the employment of the AN/ASQ-213A/R7 (see above), as the weapon effectively acts as its own targeting pod detecting hostile RF transmissions.

The AGM-88E entered Low-Rate Initial Production (LRIP) following the award for a contract to this effect by the US Department of Defence (DoD) in December 2009. Deliveries of all three production lots associated with the LRIP contract were completed in December 2013. Mr. Kasting says that the AGM-88E is in FRP for the USN and Italian Air Force. The firm completed deliveries of the first FRP contract, awarded in September 2012, in May 2016, although a “handful of units” for the Italian Air Force which are included in this production contract will be delivered by the third quarter of this year. Deliveries of missiles included in the second production contract, awarded in September 2013, will be completed by the end of 2016. A third production contract was awarded as of August 2014, with deliveries expected to commence in the first quarter of 2016, and conclude by December 2016, Mr. Kasting continues. He adds that Orbital ATK is currently

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in negotiations with the US DoD for the FRP Lots 4 and 5 for deliveries in 2017 and 2018.

Alongside the Italian Air Force and the USN, Mr. Kasting adds that the company is in discussions with the Luftwaffe (German Air Force) regarding the supply of AGM-88Es to equip that force’s Tornado-ECR aircraft. However, any purchase “is not expected to materialise for a couple of years”. Nevertheless, on 22 June the US State Department announced approval for the export of 14 AGM-88B (see above) and 16 AGM-88E weapons, along with training rounds and spare parts for $69 million to Australia. Regarding future developments of the AGM-88E, Mr. Kasting adds that “the US Navy has recently implemented funding support in the 2016 President’s Budget request for an Extended Range variant known as AARGM-ER. This development effort is scheduled to commence in 2016 and field improved capability in the 2020 timeframe.” The AARGM-ER is understood to be compatible with the Lockheed Martin F-35A/B/C Lightning-II MRCA internal weapons carriage.

I HARpyLike the United States, Israel is no stranger to air campaigns involving formidable hostile air defences as witnessed during

the Six Day War of 1965, the Yom Kippur War of 1973 and Operation PEACE FOR GALILEE in Lebanon in 1982. The need to suppress hostile air defences in its hostile locale encouraged Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) to develop the Harpy loitering munition. Unlike other weapons examined in this article Harpy is a single use Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) outfitted with a 15 kilogram (32lb) high explosive warhead. Several weapons can be launched to loiter in an area of operations. As soon as one detects a hostile radar, it homes in on the RF emissions, destroying it. Conversely, the ability to deploy several Harpies simultaneously means that they can hold radars at risk simply by loitering in the area of operations, keeping the radars

off the air by discouraging operators from activating their equipment. Open sources state that the weapon can loiter for several hours in the area of operations, and it has a range of circa 270nm (500km). Harpy is launched from the ground and in Israeli service is used by that country’s air force, plus the armies of the People’s Republic of China (PRC), India, the Republic of Korea and Turkey.

According to an IAI source, Harpy has been produced in two distinct variants, the latest of which appeared a decade ago. This latter version has undisclosed improvements in terms of range and performance compared to the original system. The IAI source continued that Harpy has never been tested as an air-launched weapon, adding that “there is some capability to launch it from an aircraft, but we have not tried it like that because we see no potential to this end.”

I MAR-1Like Harpy, Mectron’s MAR-1 ARM is shrouded in mystery. Development of the weapon was thought to have commenced in the late-1990s according to publicly available sources. These same sources claim that flight tests commenced in December 2008. The weapon is said to have a range of 54nm (100km) and is capable of detecting and homing on radars transmitting in the 800 megahertz to 20GHz range, allowing it to engage most ground-based early warning, air surveillance and fire control radars. In Força Aérea Brasileira (FAB/Brazilian Air Force) service, the MAR-1 is believed to be operational onboard the AMX International A-1M ground attack aircraft and the Northrop Grumman F-5EM Tiger-II MRCA. Interestingly, in December 2008, Brazil agreed to provide the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) with 100 MAR-1 missiles for $108 million. These are thought to have been integrated onboard

Israel Aerospace Industries has taken a different approach with their Harpy anti-radar missile which is ground-launched, and designed to loiter in the target area waiting for a radar to be activated before homing in on the radar’s transmissions © IAI

Earlier last decade, MBDA examined the possibility of developing an anti-radar variant of its Meteor beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile. However, this has not seemingly progressed to the development stage © MBDA

For now, Europe’s anti-radar capabilities rest upon the Tornado-ECR aircraft of the Luftwaffe (German Air Force) pictured here, and their Italian counterparts. These German aircraft may receive the AGM-88E weapon in the future © USAF


the PAF’s Dassault Mirage-IIIO ROSE-I (Retrofit of Strike Element-I) MCRAs and Mirage-5F ROSE-II/III MRCAs. In 2011, it was reported that the missile was being integrated onboard the PAF’s Pakistan Aeronautical Complex/Chengdu Aircraft Corporation JF-17 Block-I Thunder MRCAs. Furthermore, it was revealed this April that the MAR-1 will be integrated onboard the 36 Saab JAS-39E/F Gripen MRCA which Brazil signed a contract to acquire in October 2014.

I RussIan EffoRtsRussia’s principle ARM is the Tactical Missiles Corporation Kh-31P air-to-surface missile. Entering service in 1988, the weapon is capable of outfitting a range of Russian MRCAs and ground attack aircraft. With a range of 60nm (110km), the weapon destroys radar with a 87kg (192lb) warhead. The missile can be factory-equipped with three distinct RF seekers (L-111, L-112 and L-113) which allow it to engage radars operating across a variety of undisclosed frequency bands. Entering production in 2012, the Kh-31PD has an undisclosed modest range increase, while the Kh-31PM extends the range of

the Kh-31PD still further and consolidates the three separate RF seekers of the Kh-31P/PD into a single seeker (L-130) which has improved resistance to electronic countermeasures. Trials of the Kh-31PM commenced in circa 2006, although it has not been revealed when this version of the missile entered production.

Other Kh-31P variants include the KR-1 exported to the PRC from 1997 which is equipped with a single S-band RF seeker intended to detect the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology Chang Bai ground-based air surveillance and fire control radar used in conjunction with the Sky Bow-I/II medium-altitude air defence system developed by the same company and in service with the Republic of China Army. The KR-1 missiles exported to the PRC would later form the basis of the Hongdu Aviation Industry’s YJ-91 ARM which entered service with the People’s Liberation Army Air Force in the late-1990s. Compared to the KR-1, this weapon has a longer range of 65nm (120km) compared to the 59nm (110km) of the KR-1. Moreover, it can be equipped with field-changeable rather than factory-installed RF seekers.

In Russian Air Force service, the Kh-31P family of ARMs is reinforced by the Raduga NPO Kh-58 ARM family. Entering service in 1982 with the Soviet Air Force, the Kh-58 has been cycled through several versions. The missile was originally intended to equip the Sukhoi Su-24M ground attack aircraft. The Kh-58U version extends the missile’s range from 86nm (160km) for the Kh-58 to 130nm (250km) for the Kh-58U. Export versions include the Kh-58E, which appeared in 1991, and the Kh-58EM which became available in the mid-1990s. Seeker improvements were rolled out onto the Kh-58UShE which equips the missile’s with a single (as opposed to four on legacy versions) RF seeker which, open sources report, could include a frequency spread of one to eleven gigahertz, while the Kh-58UShKE outfitted the Kh-58UShE with folding fins to provide semi-conformal configuration for the missile when carried by its launching aircraft. The latter version is expected to outfit the Russian Air Force’s forthcoming Sukhoi T-50 fifth-generation MRCA. Production of the Kh-58UShKE is expected to commence this year.

I aRM-LEssKeen-eyed readers may have noted the lack of discussion regarding European ARMs. The reason for this is simple; there are currently none. The Royal Air Force retired its BAE Systems/MBDA ALARM (Air-Launched Anti-Radiation Missile) in 2013 after it was believed to have been used for a final time during the United Kingdom’s contribution to the NATO’s Operation UNIFIED PROTECTOR combined air and sea campaign in Libya in 2011. For now, Europe’s only ARM capability remains the AGM-88 family (see above) used by the Italian and German air forces. According to sources at MBDA, last decade the company held some internal discussions regarding the possible adaptation of its Meteor beyond visual range air-to-air missile for the anti-radar mission. These discussions are not thought to have progressed beyond a small number of presentations detailing this as a possible future mission for the weapon. For now, Europe’s ARM capabilities remain the USN and USAF, and the hope that they will bring their AGM-88 series weapons to suppress hostile air defences during any future air campaign involving the continent and Uncle Sam.


SUBMARINE SENSORS

Luca Peruzzi

DOwN PERIScOPE!Advanced optronics provide non-penetrating hull mast systems a clear advantage compared to direct-view periscopes. This technology is now being pushed even further with low-profile optronics and new concepts based on non-rotational solutions.

L-3 KEO provides the US Navy with the Universal Modular Mast (UMM), which

serves as a lifting mechanism for five different sensors including the AN/BVS1

photonics mast, a high data rate mast, multi-functional masts and an integrated electronics support measure © US Navy


The ‘Virginia’ class nuclear-powered attack submarine USS Missouri seen

here with her two L-3 KEO AN/BVS-1 photonics masts. This class of SSN has been the first to carry only

non-hull penetrating photonics masts for surveillance and attack © US Navy

Interest in non-hull penetrating optronics periscopes began in the 1980s. They were envisaged to improve submarine design flexibility and safety.

The operational advantages conferred by these systems included the sharing of the periscope’s imagery on several crew screens, rather than just for the crewmember using the periscope, simplified operation and improved capabilities including a Quick Look Round (QLR) function which exposed

the periscope to the surface for the shortest possible time to subsequently reduce the platform’s exposure and hence the possibility of detection by anti-submarine warfare platforms. This QLR function has become increasingly important given the growing use of submarines for the collection of intelligence.

In addition to improving submarine design flexibility by decoupling the control room’s location from the optronics

masts, the latter enhances control room ergonomics by freeing up space which would usually be occupied by the periscopes. Non-hull penetrating masts also can be reconfigured with relative ease with new systems and capabilities, and have fewer moving parts, thus reducing overall periscope life cycle costs and correspondingly the maintenance, repair and overhaul burden. Ongoing technological advancements are helping


SUBMARINE SENSORS

design work for the lower-profile mast, with options to produce up to 29 photonics masts over a four-year period, as well as to provide engineering services. The LPPM initiative is realising the capabilities of the vessel’s current periscope, but is reduced in size to resemble a more traditional periscope, like the Kollmorgen Type-18 periscope which began to be rolled out on the US Navy’s ‘Los Angeles’ class SSNs as they entered service from 1976.

Although offering unique capabilities, the AN/BVS-1 is large and its shape is unique to the US Navy, allowing the immediate identification of the submarine’s nationality if the periscope is detected. According to publicly available information, the LPPM has the same diameter as the Type-18 periscope, with an external look resembling the basic shape of the same periscope. The LPPM is a modular non hull-penetrating design in a telescopic universal modular mast bay that provides submarines with improvements in stealth and survivability.

A German Navy ‘Type 212A’ class conventional hunter-killer submarine

showing its masts. The second batch of ‘Type 212A’ and ‘Todaro’ class SSKs to be

delivered to the German and Italian navies has a combination of SERO-400

and OMS-110 penetrating and non-penetrating masts © Luca Peruzzi

to reduce periscope detection with further improvements heralded via the push towards low-profile optronics masts.

I ‘VIRgINIA’ clASSEarlier this year the US Navy installed a new stealthy periscope onboard one of its ‘Virginia’ class nuclear-powered attack submarines (SSNs) based on L-3 Communications’ Block 4 Low-Profile Photonics Mast (LPPM). The company is working to provide a slimmer version of the current Kollmorgen (now L-3 Kollmorgen Electro-Optical/KEO) AN/BVS-1 photonics mast installed on the same class of SSNs to help reduce the possibility of radar detection.

L-3 Communications announced on 26 May that its optronics business L-3 KEO (in February 2012, L-3 Communications absorbed KEO resulting in the formation of L-3 KEO) had been awarded a $48.7 million, competitively bid contract from the US Navy’s Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) to perform engineering and

Design features include short wave infrared and high definition visual imaging, laser range finding and an antenna suite providing broad electro-magnetic spectral coverage. The L-3 KEO LPPM prototype is, to date, only operational on board the USS Texas ‘Virginia’ class SSN, providing an initial operational capability with the new system. The first production mast will be completed in 2017 and the first installation will commence in 2018. According to L-3 KEO, the company plans to develop its LPPM so that NAVSEA can use the same mast onboard new submarines, as well as retrofits to existing vessels, as part of a continuous modernisation programme that addresses reliability, performance and affordability. The export version of the AN/BVS-1, known as the Model 86, was first sold internationally to the Egyptian Navy as part of a larger retrofit of four ‘Romeo’ class conventional hunter-killer submarines (SSKs) under a contract announced in 2000. Other users include

Imagery from an L-3 KEO AN/BVS-1 photonics mast is seen here on an

operator console. Non-hull penetrating masts bring benefits regarding control

room ergonomics and also improve submarine safety by improving the

structural integrity of the hull © US Navy

an unidentified European customer which uses the Model 86 onboard its SSKs.

Together with the LPPM, L-3 KEO provides the US Navy with the Universal Modular Mast (UMM). This is a non-hull penetrating mast that is installed on

‘Virginia’ class submarines. The UMM serves as a lifting mechanism for five different sensors which includes the AN/BVS-1, the OE-538 radio mast, a high data rate antenna, a special missions mast, plus the US Navy’s Submarine Integrated Antenna System and integrated Electronic Support Measure (ESM) mast. KEO received the contract from the US Department of Defence for the development of the UMM in 1995. In April 2014, L-3 KEO was awarded a contract worth $15 million to provide 16 UMMs to furnish several ‘Virginia’ class SSNs.

Other customers for the UMM include the Marina Militaire (Italian Navy) which has so equipped the first and second batch of its ‘Todaro’ class SSKs; the latter two boats to be delivered respectively in 2015 and 2016. L-3 KEO also owns the Italian periscope specialists Calzoni which has developed an Electronic UMM (E-UMM), which eliminates external hydraulics

to raise and lower the periscope via the introduction of electronic actuation.

L-3 KEO’s latest offering is the non-penetrating Attack Optronic System (AOS). This is a low-profile mast combining the features of the company’s conventional Model 76IR search periscope and its Model 86 optronic mast (see above). Offering reduced visual and radar signatures, the new mast has a head diameter of only 190mm (7.4 inches) and a 453 kilogram (996.6lb) weight penalty. In addition to a laser rangefinder, thermal imager and a High-Definition Colour Television (HDTV) camera the AOS includes a low-light TV camera.

I OMS-110In the first half of the 1990s, Germany’s Carl Zeiss (now Airbus Defence and Space) began the preliminary development of its


SUBMARINE SENSORS

Optronic Mast System (OMS). The first customer for the production version of the OMS, known as the OMS-110, was the South African Navy which selected the system for its three ‘Heroine’ class SSKs delivered between 2005 and 2008. The Hellenic Navy also chose the OMS-110 for its ‘Papanikolis’ class SSKs, followed by the Republic of Korea Navy (RoKN) for its ‘Chang Bogo’ class SSKs. The OMS-110 was also installed on the Indian Navy’s ‘Shishumar’ class SSKs and the ‘Tridente’ class conventional hunter-killer boats for the Marinha Portuguesa (Portuguese Navy). One of the latest procurements of the OMS-110 has been to outfit the UMM (see above) of the Italian Navy’s ‘Todaro’ class SSKs, and the Deutsche Marine (German Navy) ‘Type 212’ class conventional hunter-killer boats. These boats will combine the OMS-110 with the Airbus Defence and Space non- penetrating SERO 400 attack periscope. The OMS-110, meanwhile, features two- axis line-of-sight stabilisation, a third-generation mid-wave thermal camera,

HDTV and an optional eye-safe laser rangefinder. The periscope’s QLR mode allows a fast, programmable 360 degree panoramic view. Reportedly, this can be accomplished by the OMS-110 in less than three seconds.

Airbus Defence and Security has developed, either as a complement to the OMS-110 or as a stand-alone solution, the OMS-200 low-profile optronics mast. Unveiled at the 2013 Defence Security and Equipment International exhibition in London, this mast sets itself apart through enhanced stealth technology as well as its compact design, according to the manufacturer. The OMS-200 is a compact, modular, low-profile, non-hull penetrating, search/attack optronics mast integrating multiple mission sensors in a single radar absorbent housing. In its role of being a ‘replacement’ for the traditional direct view periscope, the OMS-200 was specifically designed to

retain stealth characteristics in the visual, infrared and radar domains. The OMS-200 combines three sensors including HDTV, a shortwave thermal imager and an eye-safe laser rangefinder. The high image quality and resolution of the shortwave infrared camera can be complemented with a mid-wave thermal imager to enhance surveillance, particularly in poor visibility when there is mist, fog or haze. The OMS-200 can merge its imagery to deliver a single picture while benefitting from high-performance line-of-sight stabilisation, the company told Armada.

I SERIES 30During the 2014 Euronaval 2014 exhibition held in Paris, Sagem announced that it had been selected by Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering (DSME) to supply non-hull penetrating optronic masts to equip the RoKN’s new ‘Son-Won-Il’ class SSKs, for which DSME is the prime contractor. This contract award marked a key export success for Sagem’s latest Series 30 Search Optronic Mast (SOM) family. This is a non-hull penetrating optronics search mast which can simultaneously accommodate more than four advanced optronics channels and a full range of electronic warfare and Global Positioning System (GPS) antennae; all housed in a lightweight sensor pod. Optronics sensors

Sagem has developed and put into production the family of Series 30 surveillance (SOM) and attack (AOM) masts, which have customers worldwide including the French Navy. The AOM mast has been designed to present a very low-profile visual signature © Luca Peruzzi

The latest customers of DCNS’ ‘Scorpene’ class SSKs are equipped with a mix of

Sagem penetrating and non-penetrating masts, including the Series 30 mast which

includes four optronics sensors, notably HDTV, thermal imager, low-light TV and an

eye-safe laser rangefinder © DCNS

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on the Series 30 SOM include a high-definition thermal imager, HDTV, low-light TV and an eye-safe laser range finder. Supported antennae include GPS, an early warning Electronic Support Measure (ESM), a direction-finding ESM and communications. Among the operational modes, the system offers fast QLR (see above) while all its optronics channels are available simultaneously. The full digital dual screen displays have an intuitive graphical interface.

Sagem is already supplying a variant of the Series 30 SOM for the Marine Nationale (French Navy) new ‘Barracuda’ class SSNs, while another variant is understood to have been sold to a further, as yet unidentified, export customer. According to Sagem, the Series 30 SOM being supplied to the RoKN will include an ESM, as well as

Thales has equipped all the Royal Navy’s ‘Astute’ class submarines with an optronics mast suite which includes CM010 and CM011 sensor head units. These products are providing the baseline for a new series of submarine periscopes © UK MoD

discreet infrared communications. An attack version of the Series 30 SOM, known as the Series 30 AOM, featuring a low-profile mast is also available and is fully compatible with the Series 30 SOM version in terms of mechanical, electronic and software interfaces. The same cabinet and cables can be used with both sensor pods, enabling navies to select the optimal configuration for a specific mission. Baseline sensors include a high-definition thermal imager and HDTV, while optional systems include an eye-safe range finder, short-wave thermal imager and a day/night backup camera.

I CM010With a pedigree dating back to 1917 when its predecessor became sole supplier to the Royal Navy, Pilkington Optronics

(now Thales) initiated the development of its private-venture CM010 family of optronics masts, installing a demonstrator onboard the Senior Service’s ‘Trafalgar’ class SSN in 1996 prior to the company’s selection by BAE Systems in 2000 to equip the Royal Navy’s new ‘Astute’ class SSNs with a dual CM010 optronics mast for the first three boats (out of a total class size of seven vessels). Thales was subsequently awarded contracts to equip the balance of the class with the dual CM010 configuration.

The adoption of the CM010 design onboard the ‘Astute’ class makes the Royal Navy second only to the US Navy’s ‘Virginia’ class in operating an entirely non-penetrating visual system onboard its submarines. The CM010 includes HDTV and a thermal imager while Thales’

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SUBMARINE SENSORS

NEXT ISSUE OCTOBER-NOVEMBER 2015:PUBLICATION DATE: 1 OCTOBERADVERTISING DEADLINE: 14 SEPTEMBER

■Air Command and Control Systems

Military aircraft are the vital component of any air campaign, however, these campaigns need to be managed and coordinated, with Air Command and Control Systems providing the modus operandi to this end.

■Satellite Communications

Satellite Communications can enable land forces to overcome many of the limitations of conventional tactical radios in terms of available bandwidth and range, with several major programmes ongoing to this end.

■Amphibious Support ShipsFew naval platforms assist expeditionary operations more than the amphibious support ships which offer a large volume of floating space, and the wherewithal to operate landing craft and

helicopters, while providing onboard command and control facilities.

■Short-Range Air DefenceDefending the skies against helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft has always been important for deployed troops. However, emerging threats such as Unmanned Aerial Vehicles are leading to a renaissance of interest in Short-Range Air Defence.

■Unmanned Combat Ariel VehiclesUnmanned Combat Ariel Vehicles, or ‘UCAVS’ as they are also known, provide a means to hit dangerous, heavily-defended targets without placing aircrew at risk. They have become the weapon par excellence for the attack of high value targets in recent years.

■Programme Focus –FA/TA-50 The Republic of Korea has entered the select club of nations which can design, develop and produce advanced multi-role combat aircraft illustrated by its realisation of the Korea Aerospace Industries’ FA/TA-50 Golden Eagle.

■Operational Focus – Tragedy in the MediterraneanHeart-wrenching pictures of refugees trying to escape war-torn North and Central Africa, and often losing their lives in the Mediterranean during the attempt, has prompted a significant Search-and-Rescue operation to save those in danger.

■Infantry Fighting VehiclesOffering firepower, protection and mobility, the Infantry Fighting Vehicle is as relevant to military operations as ever, with several major programmes ongoing around the world to procure new IFVs or to upgrade existing platforms.

■Tactical Radios CompendiumCarrying voice, data and imagery traffic the tactical radio is far more than just a communications device. Technological innovations are offering major advances in the capabilities of such equipment as Armada’s Tactical Radios Compendium explains.

CM011 combines the HDTV with a high-performance image intensification camera to provide an underwater viewing capability that a conventional thermal imager cannot offer. In May 2007 Thales started delivery of CM010 masts to Japan’s Mitsubishi Electric Corporation for installation aboard the Japanese Maritime Self-Defence Force’s new ‘Soryu’ class SSK, under a contract received in November 2004. Thales is currently developing a low-profile variant of the

CM010 with the same functionality and a sensor suite comprising HDTV, a thermal imager and low-light TV or a laser range finder, intended for specific missions or for smaller SSKs. Conceived to support special operations on high- end platforms, the ULPV (Ultra-Low Profile Variant) will offer a pod option combining dual sensors (HDTV, an image intensifier or a thermal imager) in a ultra-low profile sensor head with a visual signature similar to an attack periscope

of under 90mm (3.5 inches), but with stabilisation and ESM support.

I ThE PANORAMIc MASTThe largest operator of advanced submarines, the US Navy is moving periscope technology forward via the Affordable Modular Panoramic Photonics Mast (AMPPM) programme. Launched in 2009, the AMPPM initiative aims “to develop a new submarine sensor mast designed to provide the highest quality sensors for a panoramic search capability in the visible and infrared ranges, as well as long range detection and identification capabilities with short-wave infrared and hyper-spectral sensors,” according to the US Navy’s Office of Naval Research (ONR) which is overseeing the programme. The AMPPM is designed to drastically reduce fabrication and maintenance costs by its modular design and non-rotational structure. In addition, it is expected to significantly increase operational availability compared with current photonics masts, says the ONR. According to the latest programme developments, the prototype mast developed by Panavision, which was selected by the ONR in June 2011 to develop the AMPPM, will undergo at least two years of tests on land. This will be followed by sea trials expected to commence by the start of 2018. The AMPPM is earmarked for the eventual installation onboard the ‘Virginia’ class SSNs. These will provide the boats with a 360 degree field-of-view using a non-rotational mast.

The JMSDF’s JNS Hakuryu SSK belongs to the ‘Soryu’ class and is equipped with Thales’ CM010 mast. These are supplied to Mitsubishi, the prime contractor for the ‘Soryu’ class, for installation onboard the submarines © US Navy

For advertising opportunities contact your local armada representative or:vishal mehta: [email protected] (+66) 2 204 2370 ext 123

Joha djalmetov: [email protected] (+66) 2 204 2370 ext 125

an armada international supplementan armada international supplementAn in-depth special on the programmes, advanced technologies and procurement opportunities for

the world wide tactical radios market.

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Sagem Helicopter Solutions Sagem lets you mix and match the solutions you need for your missions. From autopilots, flight controls, inertial navigation and observation to data management and transmission systems, we deliver original equipment or retrofit solutions tailored to your specific requirements. Because mission success depends on the right ingredients. www.sagem.com

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