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11 May 17. Turkey frigate radar prepares for live-fire. Turkey’s indigenously-designed ÇAFRAD multi-function phased array radar, which will be integrated on the navy’s upcoming TF-2000 anti-air warfare frigate, will go through live fire trials at sea next year.
For the testing, the Aselsan-developed radar suite will be integrated onto a vessel in 2018 for the firing of Sea Sparrow missiles. The Sea Sparrow is a radar-guided missile that provides ships with a self-defence capability against air and surface threats.
‘We will illuminate a target and then fire a Sea Sparrow missile,’ explained Kivanc Inan, project manager for naval radars at Aselsan.
Inan told Shephard that the company was currently performing sub-systems qualifications for ÇAFRAD as part of Phase 1 of the Turkish Navy’s future frigate programme.
The next step will be factory qualifications testing and acceptance tests that are likely to take place later this year, which will then pave the way for the live-fire trials next year. If all goes to plan, the project will enter Phase 2 with a serial production contract to be signed next year.
For the TF-2000, the ÇAFRAD will be integrated into a single mast structure and will be the key sensor suite for the frigate, which is being procured to enhance the Turkish Navy’s anti-air warfare capabilities.
The configuration shown at this year’s IDEF exhibition shows a non-rotating IFF antenna subsystem at the top of the mast structure. The mast also incorporates four active phased array multifunction radars for target detection (X-Band), along with four active phased array illumination radars for semi-active missile guidance (X-Band).
The bottom of the mast features four long-range search radars (S-Band) that can detect, track and classify air and surface targets up to 450km away. This S-Band search radar has commonality with similar products that Aselsan has already developed for land applications.
All the radars are in fixed positions rather than rotating, and provide 360 degree coverage. Inan explained that non-rotating systems provide highly accurate track information, compared with rotating systems, although they are heavier and require more energy for power and cooling.
Aselsan provides all the components for the mast structure, with ÇAFRAD being one of the company’s most ambitious naval radar projects it has ever undertaken. (Source: Shephard)
11 May 17. Northrop Grumman delivers first LRIP AN/TPS-80 G/ATOR radar system to USMC. Northrop Grumman has delivered the first low-rate initial production (LRIP) AN/TPS-80 ground/air task-oriented radar (G/ATOR) system to the US Marine Corps (USMC). The G/ATOR system has successfully completed the system acceptance test procedure ahead of schedule, effectively marking the achievement of the final milestone in the production test phase.
Northrop Grumman Mission Solutions vice-president Roshan Roeder said: “Today’s threat environment, and the threat environment of the future, demands the unprecedented level of protection offered by the G / ATOR system.
“Through our strong partnership with the Marine Corps, Northrop Grumman is providing warfighters with capabilities that can outmatch any other system.”
The light and compact AN / TPS-80 radar can be quickly installed by helicopter or vehicle, and was developed to replace five legacy systems operated by the marines. The system’s open architecture enables it to interface directly with multiple types of command and control systems on a plug-and-fight basis.
It is also equipped with software loads that facilitate optimisation of the radar’s multi-mission capabilities to perform each mission as effectively as possible. The system completed initial developmental testing and operational assessment, as well as a formal Marine Corps production readiness review in 2013. The company t