UTC Aerospace Systems (UTAS) and Selex ES are partnering to develop a new long-range synthetic aperture radar that can be integrated into the former's DB-110 electro-optical and infrared (EO/IR) sensors.
The companies say the product, called TacSAR will allow DB-110 operators to collect images through cloud cover that the EO/IR system cannot penetrate.
TacSAR can be integrated seamlessly into existing operations and uses the same aircraft interface and data link, says UTAS.
DB-110 is derived from the SYERS reconnaissance system carried by the US Air Force's Lockheed U-2s and collects high-resolution images during day or night using visible and infrared light.
But TacSAR uses radar - it is based on Selex's Seaspray unit - to collect images through all types of weather and can track targets with a ground moving target indicator.
More than a dozen countries have DB-110s installed on a variety of aircraft, including the Panavia Tornados operated by the UK Royal Air Force and Lockheed F-16s flown by a number of NATO nations, says UTAS.
Source: Flight Daily News
