General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc

Advanced Radar Detection System Tested on MQ-9 Predator B UAS

By Mike Ball / 11 Feb 2019
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GA-ASI Predator B UAS

General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI) and Raytheon Deutschland GmbH have announced that the two companies have successfully proven the performance of a recently developed Electronic Intelligence (ELINT) sensor called the Advanced Radar Detection System (ARDS). The payload was integrated in a wing-mounted pod and test-flown on an MQ-9 RPAS (remotely piloted aircraft system).

“We’re excited to work with Raytheon Deutschland on this sovereign sensor capability,” said Linden Blue, CEO, GA-ASI. “This system will provide high-performance ELINT capability to our European allies and potentially other global customers.”

ARDS is a fully digital, high-precision radar-detection sensor that was developed by Raytheon Deutschland GmbH. ARDS is a platform-independent, follow-on development of the digital ELS (Emitter Location System) that is now operational on German Luftwaffe Tornado ECR’s (Electronic Combat / Reconnaissance version).

During the flight tests, the system was deployed in a wing-pod configuration on a GA-ASI Medium-altitude, Long-endurance (MALE) MQ-9 Predator B RPA, operating from their Gray Butte Flight Operations facility near Palmdale, California.

During flight testing against ground radar targets, the system verified its performance with regard to processing speed and geolocation precision.

In addition to sensor performance, the use of aircraft datalink and ground station elements were also successfully demonstrated. Precision direction-finding and identification of several civilian radars was demonstrated, with the resulting data downlinked in real-time to the aircraft’s ground control station.

The flight testing was a jointly funded initiative of GA-ASI and Raytheon Deutschland. For GA-ASI this represents an expansion of sensor options and mission spectrum of its MQ-9 aircraft systems. For Raytheon Deutschland this effort was an important milestone towards the international marketing of ARDS, which was developed exclusively in Germany as a non-ITAR, “sovereign payload.”

To learn more, visit the General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc Partner Hub: Innovation Partner Hub
Posted by Mike Ball Mike Ball is our resident technical editor here at Unmanned Systems Technology. Combining his passion for teaching, advanced engineering and all things unmanned, Mike keeps a watchful eye over everything related to the unmanned technical sector. With over 10 years’ experience in the unmanned field and a degree in engineering, Mike’s been heading up our technical team here for the last 8 years. Connect & Contact

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