25 August 2021
by Nicholas Fiorenza
The Bundesamt für Ausrüstung, Informationstechnik und Nutzung der Bundeswehr (BAAINBw), Germany's Federal Office for Bundeswehr Equipment, Information Technology and In-Service Support, has ordered radars from Hensoldt and Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) for the German Navy's F124 air-defence frigates, IAI announced in a press release on 24 August.
The BAAINBw has ordered radars from Hensoldt and IAI for the German Navy's F124 air defence frigates. (Hensoldt)
The Israeli company said the EUR200 million (USD235 million) contract covers the delivery and installation of four sensor systems, each comprising a radar and identification friend-or-foe (IFF) system.
On 23 June the budget committee of the Bundestag approved the funding to deal with obsolescence issues with the F124's long-range sensors. IAI specified in its 24 August press release that the frigate's radars would be refurbished to overcome the obsolescence of their electronics components.
The delivery includes a shore facility in northern Germany that will be a fully functional copy of the F124's radars to train users and service technicians and to test further developments on land before installing them into the frigates.
27 March 2024
by Olivia Savage & Cem Devrim Yaylali & Raghuraman C S
A screenshot from an Aselsan video showing its new AESA radar in an anechoic chamber prior to flight trials aboard an F-16. (Aselsan)
Aselsan's new active electronically scanned array (AESA) Nose Radar has completed its maiden flight onboard the Turkish Air Force's (TuAF's) Lockheed Martin F-16 Block-30 fighter jet.
According to Aselsan on 26 March, the indigenously developed radar is designed to support both air-to-air and air-to-ground missions and offers capabilities such as multitarget detection and tracking, beyond-visual-range missile guidance, high-resolution imaging, and electronic warfare functionalities.
Commonly referred to as Murad, the Nose Radar is a key component of the Özgür programme, dedicated to modernising the TuAF's F-16 Block-30 fleet. The initiative involves integrating new indigenous software and hardware on the aircraft, including for the mission control computer, and replacing elements of the avionics and cockpit displays.
After successful integration of the Nose Radar on the F-16 Block-30s, the aircraft will become a 4.5-generation platform, according to the President of Defence Industry Agency (SSB), Haluk Görgün. İsmail Demir, then president of SSB, noted in November 2022 during an unveiling of the radar that its capabilities were “equivalent to the most advanced radars in the world”.
27 March 2024
by Cem Devrim Yaylali
A screenshot from an Aselsan video showing its new AESA radar in an anechoic chamber prior to flight trials aboard an F-16. (Aselsan)
Aselsan revealed on 16 March that its domestically developed active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar made its maiden flight onboard a Turkish Air Force Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcon combat aircraft.
The test was performed on 15 February aboard a test aircraft that also featured a mission computer developed by Aselsan.
The radar was designed with gallium nitride (GaN)-based chip technology, and has capabilities such as automatic target recognition, multiple target tracking, terrain mapping, distance measurement, automatic altitude determination, under-cloud surveillance with synthetic aperture radar, automatic target classification with artificial intelligence-supported algorithms, wideband radar spectrum monitoring, directional electronic jamming, and more effective guidance for air-launched munitions. Technical specifications of the radar were not disclosed.
Aselsan general manager Ahmet Akyol announced that the radar will operate in manned platforms F-16 Özgür, Hürjet, Kaan, as well as the Akıncı, Kızılelma, and Anka-3 unmanned platforms.
For more information on Turkey's domestically developed AESA radar, please seeTurkish Air Force receives modernised F-16 aircraft.
27 March 2024
by Gareth Jennings
The Bird AeroSystems defensive aids installation fitted to an A319 airliner (pictured here) of an undisclosed European operator. (Bird AeroSystems)
Bird AeroSystems has fitted its aircraft defensive aids system (DAS) for an undisclosed European A319 operator, likely the Hungarian Air Force (HuAF).
The Israeli company said on 27 March that its Self Protection Radar Electro-Optic System (SPREOS) directed infrared countermeasure (DIRCM) and Aeroshield Missile Protection System (AMPS) had been fitted to multiple A319 aircraft for an undisclosed customer to protect against surface-to-air missile threats.
“At the core of this project is the SPREOS, a patented DIRCM system for missile approach verification, tracking, and laser jamming,” the company said. “The installation also included Bird's versatile AMPS solution, designed for both military and civilian markets, providing complete protection against ground-to-air threats, including [manportable air-defence system] MANPADS attacks, for helicopters and VVIP aircraft for heads of states. Additionally, the installation of the AeroShield pod solution on the Airbus A319 aircraft was expanded to be installed also for Dassault Falcon 7X aircraft,” it added.
The Bundesamt für Ausrüstung, Informationstechnik und Nutzung der Bundeswehr (BAAINBw), Germany's Fe...
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