Radar company Racal has submitted a concept study to the UK Ministry of Defence to give the Royal Navy's proposed future organic airborne early warning aircraft (FOAEW) overland surveillance capability with a synthetic aperture radar and moving target indicator.
The FOAEW aircraft is to replace Westland Sea King AEW helicopters on two RN aircraft carriers due to enter service in the second decade of the next century.
"Naval task forces are becoming increasingly involved in littoral operations, " says Racal. "This is likely to expand the FOAEW role into land surveillance and air interdiction. To provide a guaranteed organic AEW capable of continuous coverage, the platform must be co-located with the task force."
Racal's proposal significantly expands the AEW force's fleet air defence role. Within the RN, where rethinking of the requirement is under way, it has been given a guarded welcome.
Unofficially, procurement officers talk of the requirement evolving into a future organic airborne command and control platform. The cost of buying the extra capability, which duplicates to some extent the RAF's Airborne Stand-Off Radar ground surveillance system, worries the RN. The MoD says it is "premature" to talk about adopting the Racal proposal.
The FOAEW has not been translated into a formal staff requirement because much depends on the final design of the UK's new aircraft carrier.
Source: Flight International
