15 July 2014

Raytheon demonstrates prototyping of AESA/GaN technologies into Patriot radar

Raytheon Company of Waltham, MA, USA has demonstrated prototyping of active electronically scanned array (AESA) and gallium nitride (GaN) technologies into the US Patriot Air and Missile Defense System radar. In addition to enabling future 360 sensor coverage, the technologies will significantly increase the defended area and decrease the time to detect, discriminate and engage threats, says the firm. The introduction of GaN-based AESA technologies should also further improve reliability and lower the life-cycle costs for the Patriot radar, beyond what has already been achieved with other recent Patriot radar improvements.

“GaN-based AESA technologies represent the future of ground-based sensors and will have future application to Raytheon’s entire sensor portfolio,” says Ralph Acaba, VP of Integrated Air and Missile Defense at Raytheon’s Integrated Defense Systems business in Tewksbury, MA. “Along with the Patriot radar, the entire Patriot system has kept pace with the latest technological advances to ensure over match against current and evolving threats,” he adds. “The Patriot that’s currently in production and fielded is the most advanced air and missile defense system available today.”

Further expanded demonstrations are planned in the months ahead.

Raytheon has been developing GaN over the last 15 years and has invested more than $150m on the technology. It has demonstrated the maturity of the technology in a number of ways, including exceeding the reliability requirement for insertion into the production of military systems. This maturation of GaN resulted in a Manufacturing Readiness Level (MRL) production capability of ‘8’, the highest level obtained by any organization in the defense industry for this technology.

The Patriot air and missile defense system provides protection against threats including aircraft, tactical ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Continually upgraded and enhanced to reflect the latest technology, Patriot is used by 12 nations worldwide. Raytheon is the prime contractor for both domestic and international Patriot Air and Missile Defense Systems and the system integrator for Patriot Advanced Capability-3 missiles.

Tags: Raytheon Radar

Visit: www.raytheon.com