Visitors to the show had an exclusive preview of Raytheon's proposed avionics systems for the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF). Raytheon is a partner in the Boeing One Team JSF project competing head to head with the Lockheed Martin team in the winner-takes-all battle for the fighter of the future.
Peter Pao, Raytheon Electronic Systems vice-president and leader of Raytheon's JSF pursuit unveiled the sensors and processors he believes will give the Boeing team the edge and lead the way in avionics for the 21st century.
He says the distributed infra red (IR) system featuring six sensors giving spherical coverage and delivering navigation, missile and situational awareness to the pilot is a world first. The integrated radar early warning capable of detecting and blocking enemy radar was also announced along with the aircraft's brain, its integrated core processor and the targeting forward looking infra red (FLIR) radar.
But it is not just the new products that Raytheon claims bring a competitive edge to the soon-to-fly concept demonstrator. "For the past three and a half years we've been developing a way of working we call the Raytheon Product Family. "It will make traditional block upgrades a thing of the past and deliver a continuous technology/product development process. It lets us deliver a forward- and backward-looking family of products."
It is a customer driven approach, Pao says, which incorporates long-term technology and product planning. "After all we are designing a jet with a lifespan of 50 years. Imagine how much the technology will have changed by then.
Source: Flight Daily News
