ANDREW DOYLE/ NORDHOLZ AIRBASE, GERMANY
Unmanned air vehicle completes six flights and impresses Berlin, which needs Atlantic SIGINT replacement by 2010
EADS and Northrop Grumman have completed a six-flight demonstration in Germany of a US Air Force RQ-4A Global Hawk unmanned air vehicle equipped with the European company's electronic intelligence (ELINT) payload.
The sorties, operated from the German navy's Nordholz airbase near Cuxhaven in late October and early November, were aimed at showing that the high-altitude, long-endurance UAV fitted with the EADS sensor can operate safely in civil controlled airspace and replace Germany's four ageing Dassault Atlantic signals intelligence (SIGINT) aircraft from 2008.
The "EuroHawk" - flying over the North Sea - was used to detect, identify and track airborne, shipborne and land-based radar emitters.
Interface problems between the sensor and the aircraft prevented real-time data transmission on the first and second "technical integration" flights, says Lt Col Michael Hain, EuroHawk project manager at the German ministry of defence. However, it was possible to verify the performance of the sensor during the second sortie by storing the data on board the aircraft.
The third flight achieved a full mission profile, including raw data transmission, and demonstrated that "UAV operations above FL450 [45,000ft/13,725m] are possible without restrictions", says Hain. The fourth flight verified assumptions on datalink capacity, evaluated data distribution on the ground and showed the UAV" can be handled like a manned aircraft by air traffic control", says Hain.
With mission control and EADS ground stations connected, German operators were able to analyse ELINT data in near-real time and retask the sensor as required.
Before the trials, an agreement was signed with air traffic control authorities to provide lead-in briefings for controllers, arrange frequency clearance for the datalinks and define emergency procedures. Eurocontrol's Maastricht centre required notification 50min before take-off, or the start of descent, to close a corridor in controlled airspace below FL450. The RQ-4A, which has a 35.4m-wingspan and typically cruises at around 60,000ft, can reach 45,000ft 22min after take-off.
The MoD has not yet ruled out the manned Bombardier Global Express business jet as a candidate for its future SIGINT platform. However, Hain says the MoD is "very satisfied "with the results of the EuroHawk demonstration, which will be "incorporated into the final procurement document" for submission to the government.
He adds that development time could be "three years from a decision to the first prototype with operational capabilities". The Atlantics will almost certainly be phased out by 2010, says Hain.
Source: Flight International
