Raytheon Flies AESA Retrofit Radar In F-16

An international customer could order the first active, electronically scanned array (AESA) radar upgrade for the Lockheed Martin F-16 in 2011, moving ahead of the still-undecided U.S. Air Force, Raytheon says. The company has completed flight trials of its Raytheon Advanced Combat Radar (RACR) in a U.S. Air Force F-16D Block 50 at Edwards AFB, Calif. The six flights were conducted in July, but have just been announced. Northrop Grumman flew its competing Scalable Agile Beam Radar (SABR) on an F-16 at Edwards in January, in support of a U.S. Air Force AESA feasibility study. The July flights were the first time RACR had flown in any platform, says Ken Murphy, Raytheon business development manager. Northrop’s SABR previously had flown on the company’s Sabreliner testbed. Murphy says the RACR went from concept to flight on the F-16 in 24 months because it is 90% common with the APG-79 AESA on the F/A-18E/F and the APG-82 being installed on the F-15E. The Edwards flights demonstrated air-to-air and air-to-ground modes including high-resolution synthetic-aperture radar (SAR) imaging with ground moving-target indication overlay, he says. Air combat modes were demonstrated and the radar integrated with the F-16’s joint helmet-mounted cuing system. Efforts to sell AESA upgrades to F-16 operators are picking up pace. “I think next year will be the turning point when international customers move ahead of the U.S. Air Force,” Murphy says. USAF is looking at extending the service life of its F-16s because of delays to the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, but has yet to decide whether to fund an avionics upgrade, he says. Meanwhile, the companies have provided the U.S. government with pricing data requested by two countries that operate large F-16 fleets. “A couple of countries are seeking budgets [for upgrades],” Murphy says. RACR deliveries could begin 36 months after contract award, paced by the development of radar modes required by the customer, Murphy says, adding that node development and testing would fit within the three-year timescale of the Common Configuration Implementation Program upgrade for the F-16C/D. Cost of the RACR retrofit is comparable to that of upgrading the F-16C/D’s Northrop APG-68 mechanically scanned radar to the SAR-capable (V)9 standard, but the AESA offers a tenfold increase in reliability, Murphy says.