The German parliamentary defence-procurement approvals committee has given the go-ahead for Germany's long-awaited purchase of laser designator pods for its Panavia Tornado fleet. The contract, believed to be worth DM144 million ($91 million), will go to Rafael of Israel.
The company's Litening pod was selected early in 1996 after a competition which also involved GEC-Marconi Defence Systems with its thermal-imaging airborne laser-designation (TIALD) pod, Lockheed Martin and its low-altitude navigation and targeting infra-red for night (LANTIRN) pod and Thomson-CSF, offering the common laser designator pod.
The pod will be used in conjunction with Paveway III (GBU-24) laser-guided bombs, which will be integrated on Germany's Tornado interdictor strike aircraft from 1999 to improve their effectiveness in attacks against point targets. Germany plans to buy a total of 36 pods for delivery from 1998: 20 for the air force, and a further 16 for naval Tornado units.
The air force stopped short of placing an order for the pod in 1996 because of concern over whether Rafael would be able to meet its promised development timescales. The Litening, although it was considered to be the most cost-effective solution, also carried the highest risk because it was still under development.
Payment timescales for the system have been linked to Rafael achieving its promised technical milestones on time. The Israeli company has a co-operation agreement with German optics specialist Zeiss, which will be responsible for repair, maintenance and logistics.
The system integration will be carried out together with that of the recently-approved Litef GPS/ LINS inertial/satellite-navigation system, and Block III software for HARManti-radiation missiles.
Source: Flight International
