The German procurement agency (BWB) has signed a contract with EADS missile house, LFK, extending the manufacturer's hypersonic missile research and technology project until 2003.
LFK says it plans to conduct two flight tests of the missile "before 2003" in co-operation with technical experts from the German armed forces. The missile is being designed according to "a new integral concept" combining a high-thrust, conically-shaped engine with an aerodynamic control system using "grid-type" rudders, says the company. The engine should be capable of accelerating the missile to "approximately Mach 7" within 1.8s, EADS adds. The hypersonic test bed will also be used to investigate "a broad variety of technological and physical phenomena in the high-speed range".
"First of all we would like to demonstrate the function of the new high-thrust engine, the missile's excellent agility and manoeuvrability and, while the technology project is continued, its steerability by means of a radar terminal phase sensor," says LFK president and chief executive Peter Ibbeken.
Meanwhile, EADS has won a €7 million ($6 million) contract from the BWB to supply an ASR-E military air traffic control radar for field testing. Subject to the successful completion of the tests, BWB plans to order more than 20 radars to replace ageing German armed forces units.
The solid-state ASR-E uses advanced signal processing technology to refine the data displayed to the user, and is capable of integrating data from external information systems and other radars, according to EADS. "Safety in controlled airspace is improved because of the ability of ASR-E to detect light aircraft and hovering helicopters," claims the EADS.
Source: Flight International