Patriot SAM replacement

[seruriermarshal]

shot down a Syrian SU-22

 

[JakobS]

Seems like the government have secured enough parliamentary support to push through Patriot here in Sweden now. The deal should be finalised before the end of the week as it is now.

 

[John21]

I wonder which S&T Surveillance radars (portable) he is referring to at 13:00.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=htN5pZVnrVA

Do you by chance have the PDF these slides in the briefing came from? Google isn’t giving me anything.

 

[bring_it_on]

Integrated Air and Missile Defense Battle Command System extends hundreds of miles to enable the multi-domain battlespace

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. – Aug. 15, 2018 – The Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC)-developed Integrated Air and Missile Defense (IAMD) Battle Command System (IBCS) successfully demonstrated its ability to scale up and network across long distances during a recent U.S. Army-led test. The evaluation was conducted by U.S. Army soldiers over a five-week period with air and missile defense assets located at sites in New Mexico, Texas and Alabama.“The ability of IBCS to integrate sensors and shooters over a vast area and grow the single integrated air picture offers huge advantages to air defenders and the joint forces,” said Dan Verwiel, vice president and general manager, missile defense and protective systems, Northrop Grumman. “This was demonstrated using an operationally realistic equipment laydown across several states and showed how IBCS is truly a force multiplier.

“This Soldier Checkout Event (SCOE) demonstrated the ability of IBCS to scale broadly. It further demonstrated IBCS’ robust network management technologies to efficiently and effectively maintain voice, data and video connectivity for the warfighter’s increasingly complex and challenging environment,” said Verwiel.

As part of SCOE 4.0, the multi-node distributed test examined IBCS’ scalability, resilience and performance under stressing threat conditions. The open-architecture IBCS networked more than 20 nodes across White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico; Fort Bliss, Texas; and Redstone Arsenal, Alabama. Integrated to operate as a single system, the test involved nine IBCS engagement operations centers and 12 IBCS integrated fire control network relays, along with Sentinel short range air defense radars and Patriot radars, Patriot Advance Capability Two (PAC-2), PAC-3 and PAC-3 Missile Segment Enhancement interceptors.

The test required IBCS to virtually form an IAMD task force to defend four critical assets while tracking ‘red’ and ‘blue’ fighter aircraft, cruise missiles and tactical ballistic missiles. Multiple two-hour scenarios were run to check IBCS abilities, including: providing and managing a network to maintain voice, data and video connectivity; performing friend-or-foe identification of air objects and forming the single integrated air picture; and planning, executing and monitoring simulated threat engagements.

The test also included dynamically adding and removing nodes to confirm IBCS’ ability to self-configure as a mobile ad hoc network.

The IBCS-enabled enterprise system provides significant benefits over standalone, proprietary systems that merely ‘talk’ with each other. With IBCS, air and missile defense commanders can orchestrate forces over extensive distances using whatever means of communications that are available. Today, commanders are restricted by the proprietary and limited networks tied to the individual closed systems.

“Extensive testing has shown IBCS to be increasingly mature and its capabilities will be game-changers on the battlefield. IBCS delivers an unprecedented degree of integration to fill gaps in today’s air defenses while enabling multi-domain concepts such as affordably integrating unmanned or fifth generation fighter aircraft,” said Verwiel.

IBCS continues to validate the advantages of an open-systems, net-centric, enterprise approach to air and missile defense for getting capabilities to the warfighter that make a pivotal difference on the battlefield. Previous SCOE trials proved IBCS’ value for building a significantly more accurate integrated air picture and its effectiveness for countering electronic attacks.

The system has already demonstrated its ability to take out live targets, having conducted a successful intercept on its inaugural flight test and a more difficult “engage-on-remote” on its second flight test. During its third flight test, IBCS simultaneously intercepted two types of threats with two different interceptor types by providing command-and-control for sensors and weapons never designed to work with each other. Two more successful flight tests in support of the Indirect Fire Protection Capability were conducted with Sidewinder and Longbow Hellfire missiles. Both missiles were integrated into the system within a few short months.

IBCS is the central component of the Army’s future IAMD construct. The program is managed by the Army Program Executive Office for Missiles and Space, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama.

 

[bring_it_on]

https://twitter.com/MariuszCielma/status/1036675799162732544

 

[litzj]

https://twitter.com/MariuszCielma/status/1036675799162732544

Israelized PAC3...

 

[bring_it_on]

Army chooses Raytheon, Lockheed to mature new missile defense radars

Raytheon spokesman Mike Nachshen told Defense News that the company is entering the technology-maturation and risk-reduction phase of the program with a brand-new radar, rather than an upgraded Patriot radar.The capability was designed from the ground up using gallium nitride technology and a staring array, rather than a rotating one, to provide constant 360-degree coverage, according to Nachshen. The company has its own GaN foundry.

Raytheon expects to begin discussions with the Army over the next few weeks to determine how the radar’s performance will be evaluated, the timeline of the phase and how much the Army plans to invest.

 

[sferrin]

https://twitter.com/MariuszCielma/status/1036675799162732544

Israelized PAC3...

More like a Patriot launcher with Stunner missiles in it.

 

[bring_it_on]

Packing a punch
GEM-T is the first missile to harness the power of gallium nitride

There's a powerful substance called gallium nitride working inside many new technologies, from smart light bulbs and quick-charging cellphones to the lasers that read Blu-ray discs.

Also known as GaN, the semiconductor material boosts power in all kinds of devices. One application is the first missile to harness the power of GaN tech: GEM-T, short for the Patriot™ Guidance Enhanced Missile – Tactical Ballistic Missile. But not all GaN is created equal; the version in consumer products doesn’t hold an LED diode to what's in GEM-T. Raytheon has spent more than $300 million developing the latter kind for the defense sector.

GEM-T, a mainstay of the U.S. Army’s Patriot Air and Missile Defense system, is used against aircraft and tactical ballistic and cruise missiles. Now GEM-T is packing a GaN transmitter that never needs to be recertified over the 45-year life of the missile.

“Our GaN is what’s breathing new life into these transmitters,” said Christine Walsh, Raytheon program manager for an international Patriot program. “GEM-T has been the beneficiary of all those years of Raytheon’s work on GaN technology.”

Those years — nearly two decades — have been spent pushing the limits of power and efficiency of GaN in Raytheon’s Department of Defense-accredited Trusted Foundry, where high performance GaN amplifiers are made.

HOW IT WORKS

Transmitters connect the missile with the ground system, allowing it to control the weapon during flight. The GaN version in GEM-T uses solid state instead of the conventional traveling wave tube design, which requires a supply of parts and recertification to match the life of the missile. The new ones with GaN do not.

The new transmitter has the same form, fit and function as the old one. It’s also tough, doesn’t require additional cooling, and is ready to operate within seconds of powering up. That means that the GEM-T with the new GaN transmitter will continue to perform in the most demanding conditions.

According to Jason Rathbone, missile integrated product team lead for the Patriot product line, the tech is ready for the U.S. Army, and is affordable. “Today,” he said, “the legacy transmitters on the current GEM-T missiles need to be periodically rebuilt and recertified, so replacing the old one with the new solid-state transmitter is a smart move.”

PRODUCTION LINES ARE READY

Raytheon is ramping up production of the GEM-T missile under a number of international contracts. The new transmitter, which was designed to allow future innovations, is well on its way to completing its qualification programs and will be tested during an upcoming flight test.

This transmitter technology might also see additional testing in other missiles. The Army has indicated interest in replacing its entire inventory with these types of long-lasting transmitters, which have reduced recurring costs per unit by 36 percent in the GEM-T program.

Radars and missiles are just the beginning, as GaN technology also has the potential to replace any radio frequency application that requires high power and efficiency in a small space. That includes radio data links, active seekers and proximity fuzes. Advancements like the GEM-T transmitter are only the first.

 

[bobbymike]

Here’s hoping Raytheon has excellent cyber-security

 

[fredymac]

Updated Patriot operator displays.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_-Ozi1A3sM

 

[Moose]

Updated Patriot operator displays.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_-Ozi1A3sM

Hope Aegis Open Architecture allows it to adopt such an advanced display, because that's pretty fantastic.

 

[JakobS]

Anyone have access to this site?

http://www.defensedaily.com/army-not-pushing-360-degree-sensor-patriot-radar-replacement/

 

[bring_it_on]

The article does not appear to be accurate. The latest NDAA requires that the Army submit a proposal to fund a 360-degree sensor by 2023 or risk loosing nearly half of the funding the congress put into the program. The Army's response was to accelerate the timeline and move IOC to December, 2023 (which points to them attempting to comply with the FY19 NDAA which was recently signed into law). From what we know based on OEM statements over the last weeks and earlier, both Lockheed and Raytheon are working on a 360-degree sensor with Raytheon aiming for a non rotating array with multiple panels. There is no third OEM working on the TMRR sensor so that is a good indication on what proposals the Army is likely get get.

If the Army tinkers with the requirements significantly at this stage of the program, the Congress may just move the entire effort to the MDA which I think it has threatened to do in the past. Although a case can be made that with IFPC and Patriot married together, there will be 360-degree sensor and shooter coverage against a part of the threat, I think in the long term, given the hypersonic threat you would want that upper-lower tier, and lower-upper tier coverage in multiple sectors to cover a defended area. What the Army could do is, require a sensor to be operational by 2023 and 360-degree capability added over the next few years. That is not likely to go down well with Congress.

Just my 2-cents.

Army to accelerate LTAMDS, pulling target fielding from 2027 to 2023

The Army has a new plan for the Lower Tier Air and Missile Defense Sensor program that would accelerate initial fielding by four years to 2023, a revised schedule that addresses congressional concerns about the program and quickens competition between Lockheed Martin and Raytheon which were both tapped for the next phase of the Patriot radar modernization project.

Brig. Gen. Robert Rasch, program executive officer for missiles and space, said Army leaders also want LTAMDS, a radar that aims to give units a broader and deeper view of the battlespace than the current AN/MPQ-65A sensor system, to the field four years sooner than previously scheduled.

"The Army has asked us to go faster and Congress has asked us to go faster," he told reporters Oct. 10 at the Association of the United States Army’s annual conference. "And so we are looking at opportunities to do exactly that, to meet the congressional intent of having the capability out sooner than the program of record."

He declined to provide any specifics but added, "more information will be coming out on that very quickly. . . . Industry has been working hard, very well with us."

In December 2017, the Army approved an LTAMDS acquisition strategy that pegged initial operational capability in 2027. That date did not sit well with Congress.

The Fiscal Year 2019 National Defense Authorization Act includes a provision that would fence half of LTAMDS funding if the Army advances an acquisition strategy for a new 360-degree sensor system that proposes a target date for initial operational fielding after Dec. 31, 2023.

The Army has now reconsidered its 2027 fielding date.

In August, the Army "submitted a report to Congress . . . annotating we would pull the effort to the left to meet the congressional mandate to field by FY-23," Army spokeswoman Britney Walker told Inside Defense Oct. 12.

The Army in recent weeks tapped both Raytheon and Lockheed Martin to advance work on their respective LTAMDS proposals, according to company representatives. The selections were made with other transaction agreement rules, and the service has yet to finalize the terms or scope of the contracts, according to a source.

Both companies are proceeding into the technology maturation and risk reduction phase of the program, which requires multiple demonstrations to provide respective designs as the Army continues to refine its requirement for the Patriot radar replacement.

"We've worked with the U.S. Army for decades to address advancing threats with the latest technology," Tom Laliberty, vice president of Integrated Air and Missile Defense at Raytheon's Integrated Defense Systems business, said in a statement. "Our expertise in the lower-tier air and missile defense domain, combined with our Gallium Nitride based sensor technology, allows us to offer the U.S. Army the radar they need, when they need it."

Lockheed Martin, which is angling to unseat Raytheon as the Patriot radar provider, is looking to draw on its extensive sensor portfolio as part of its LTAMDS offering.

"We're looking at all the radars," a Lockheed Martin spokesman said Oct. 9 at the AUSA convention, referring to the company's current radar programs such as Space Fence for the Air Force, the Long Range Discrimination Radar for the Missile Defense Agency and the AN/TPQ-53 radar. “What are the processes, the technologies [for those systems] and how do we apply that to the Lower Tier Air and Missile Defense Sensor? . . . That's the discussion we're still having with the Army."

 

[bring_it_on]

AUSA 2018: Lockheed Martin, Raytheon advance in US Army’s LTAMDS effort

“The LTAMDS requirements we are working off today are far more challenging to accomplish than what we had originally back in 2014,” Bob Kelley, a senior manager at Raytheon IDS, told Jane’s on 9 October at the annual Association of the United States Army (AUSA) symposium in Washington, DC.

“Back in 2014, for affordability purposes, and really for speed purposes, we looked at a Patriot upgrade to be the LTAMDS solution,” he noted. “But given the requirements we have today, a Patriot upgrade can absolutely not be the solution.”

Raytheon has developed a prototype that might appear to look like a Patriot radar on the outside, but on the inside it has the workings of the new radar the company is going to bring forward. Raytheon has logged more than 3,000 hours on that prototype, running on a test range to rack commercial air traffic. Kelley said the company brought in the Massachusetts Air National Guard who flew fighter jets in very stressing profiles to enable the radar to collect data on the engagement.

Kelley said while Raytheon is leveraging lessons learned out of Patriot for its LTAMDS effort it is actually leveraging more out of other radar programmes such as the SPY-6 radar for the US Navy, the Three-Dimensional Expeditionary Long-Range Radar (3DELRR) for the US Air Force, and the AN/TPY-2 radar for the US Missile Defense Agency. A common theme among those three radars is the use of active electronically scanned arrays and gallium nitride transmit and receive modules.

Often, Kelley said, he is asked if Raytheon will pursue a rotating or starring radar. As Raytheon looked at the problem and the threat set soldiers face the company felt confident that it must be a starring radar.

A rotating radar, when it is not looking at the target, is predicting where that target is going to be for the next rotation around, he said.

“These threats are very high velocity and manoeuvering, it may not be where you thought it was going to be and if it is not, you just lost all the history. You might see it again, but you will pick it up as a brand new track and you are going to start that whole kill chain process [over],” Kelley said.

Rotating radars work well, Kelley noted. In fact, Raytheon’s 3DELRR is a rotating radar. The problem arises when soldiers have to deal with the intense threats peer nations have already demonstrated such as an attack on location with multiple threats, from 360° degrees, and the ability to mount an attack quickly and put threats on location in a very short period of time, overwhelming the radars and the operators manning the radars.

“You have to have simultaneous 360° with the ability to process through that whole kill chain on multiple targets simultaneously,” Kelley said. “In our studies we just didn't see how a rotator could be successful in this mission area, so we elected to go with a starring radar.”

 

[sferrin]

That nice fancy radar isn't going to accomplish much without a PAC-2 replacement for longer ranges. (No, SM-X won't work.)

 

[bring_it_on]

LTAMDS is needed for the full envelope of the MSE anyways, and there is probably some benefits to be derived from IBCS connecting THAAD and Patriot. The Radar is the primary expense driver relative to a new missile the overall cost of which is quite small relatively speaking. The path they are on is MSE-->IAMD/IBCS-->LTAMDS. They probably need to look at the launchers and interceptors next. I'd think they'd focus on the hypersonic glider threat first. I am not sure shooting down cooperating fighters or AEW aircraft 300 km out is their primary concern although that is likely to come into consideration later.

Does the PAC-2 truly outrange the PAC-3 MSE in the ABM role?

 

[sferrin]

Does the PAC-2 truly outrange the PAC-3 MSE in the ABM role?

No idea. It significantly outranges it in the SAM role though. For the BGRV defense I really wish they'd keep developing THAAD-ER.

 

[bring_it_on]

Does the PAC-2 truly outrange the PAC-3 MSE in the ABM role?

No idea. It significantly outranges it in the SAM role though. For the BGRV defense I really wish they'd keep developing THAAD-ER.

From what I have heard, the MSE outranges the PAC-2 in the BMD role with a fairly decent margin. As far as a long range SAM, I don't think a very long range SAM is what the Army needs as a priority in the short-medium term. That is likely a long term need though. Looking at the cost, the Army needs to finish developing, testing and fielding IAMD, and then buying 6-8 dozen LTAMDS sensor it needs while also upgrading Sentinels to the A4 standard for both IFPC and to extend the capability of PATRIOT. At some point they will also need to develop more modern launchers and then likely new interceptors. With IBCS and dispersed Sentinel's you do however extend the range of your sensors so as these capabilities are fielded longer ranged intercepts Over The Horizon (and against targets which may be harder to detect) targeting would begin to make a lot of sense.

THAAD-ER makes sense and I think that MDA is looking into that capability so that is not something that the Army will be developing (thank god) so I think that capability either in the form of a THAAD-ER or something different will come by the medium term.

The Army needs to focus on the areas it has determined are essential with the Air Defense modernization programs -- IAMD/LTAMDS/MSE, M-SHORAD, and IFPC. These will keep their budgets busy for half a decade if not more.

 

[bring_it_on]

Sense-Off for Lower Tier Air Missile Defense Sensor (LTAMDS)

This is an initial announcement that the Army is conducting a Sense-Off for Lower Tier Air Missile Defense Sensor (LTAMDS) solutions during 3QFY19. It is the Army's intent to use the Sense-Off as part of the evaluation to select a single vendor to build and deliver LTAMDS to the Army, supporting achievement of an Initial Operational Capability (IOC). The Government will conduct an Industry Day and expects interested participants to respond to this announcement and commit to the Sense-Off.

A. Purpose of the Sense-Off


The Government will provide industry the opportunity to demonstrate Engineering and Manufacturing Development (EMD)-like LTAMDS systems at White Sands Missile Range (WSMR), New Mexico, in 3QFY19. The demonstration event, hereinafter termed a "Sense-Off", is a critical element of the acquisition strategy to procure and field LTAMDS. The vendor solution will interoperate with the Integrated Air and Missile Defense (IAMD) Battle Command System (IBCS) Engagement Operations Center (EOC), and provide weapon guidance support for the family of PATRIOT Advanced Capability (PAC)-3 interceptors. Results from the Sense-Off, digital simulation performance, and the evaluation of the FY19 ROTI proposal will culminate in a DOTC OTA award to a single vendor who will produce six LTAMDS for qualification and fielding to support an IOC in 4QFY22. This will be followed by a follow-on contract for additional quantities.

Program Strategy


The Government is pursuing an accelerated fielding of mature technology (see attached LTAMDS schedule).



The Government will use the Sense-Off, digital simulation results, and the FY19 ROTI proposal to measure vendor performance and assess LTAMDS capability growth potential. A vendor's sensor solution must be a mature design to support fielding LTAMDS in 4QFY22. The Government will award a Firm Fixed Price (FFP) DOTC OTA to the vendor who can demonstrate holistic system level performance closest to the prioritized and weighted P-Spec threshold requirements, while also granting additional consideration to those vendors whose system potentially meets or exceeds threshold performance values. There will be a subsequent fixed price production contract or OTA for the production and fielding phase. It is anticipated this follow-on contract will be for an additional 16 systems.



Following the Sense-Off, the winning vendor will deliver 6 Production Representative Units (PRUs) via the FFP DOTC OTA for Developmental Testing/Operational Testing (DT/OT) and rapid fielding. The winning vendor will deliver three PRUs by 3QFY21, and three additional PRUs by 1QFY22. The six PRUs will be a mature design and establish the product baseline that supports follow-on production and fielding. The Government will refurbish 4 of the initial 6 PRUs to support a UMR IOC fielding in 4QFY22.

B. Industry Day (14-15 November 2018)


Vendors will provide the Government a presentation (up to 60 minutes) demonstrating their ability to participate in the Sense-Off. The Government will use this presentation to determine a vendor's eligibility to participate in the Sense-Off. These will be closed one-on-one sessions, where the vendor describes how they will meet the following to participate in the Sense-Off: 1) How you will meet size, weight, and power (SWaP) constraints (described below); 2) How you will demonstrate required LTAMDS design maturity to rapidly fabricate PRUs at OTA award; 3) Inform the Government on Sense-Off and accelerated LTAMDS fielding readiness; 4) Establish a "need to know" to receive the LTAMDS P-Spec; and 5) Evidence of ability to meet minimum range safety and operational approvals. A maximum of five participants per company will be allowed to attend Industry Day.



Vendor presentations will include the aforementioned mandatory items and include the following at a minimum:



1. Describe how the proposed LTAMDS multi-function radar solution provides search, track, classification, discrimination, identification, and weapon guidance support for the family of PAC-3 interceptors contained in a single sensor platform.

2. Describe how the proposed solution interoperates with the IBCS EOC (via Plug and Fight Kit AB-interface) architecture.

3. Describe how the proposed solution meets transportability and mobility requirements per MIL-STD-1366E on a single truck or trailer pulled by a HEMTT class prime mover.

4. Describe how the proposed LTAMDS solution meets power and cooling requirements to support up to 400 KW of prime power.

5. Describe how the proposed solution will operate using commercial generator power (minimum 400KW) and interim tactical power of 150KW maximum (via current PATRIOT EPP).

6. Describe how the proposed solution provides capability against Tactical Ballistic Missile (TBM) and non-TBM Air and Missile Defense threats.

7. Describe the proposed solution's functionality/performance against the threat across the battle space.

8. Describe how the design incorporates Modular Open Systems Architecture (MOSA) requirements in accordance with DoD Policy and Guidance.

9. Describe capability growth of the design architecture.

10. Describe program approach for participation in the LTAMDS Sense-Off.

11. Describe how the proposed solution addresses PAC-3 Missile Flight Alignment.

12. Describe digital simulation and target injection capabilities.

13. Describe P-Spec compliance crosswalk. (Vendors not participants in the previous CD Phase are exempt from providing a P-Spec crosswalk as part of Sense-Off entrance criteria).

14. Describe ability to meet minimum approvals for range Operational (e.g. radio frequency authorization, security classification guidance, test plans/procedures, test support requirements), Safety (e.g. hazard analysis, safety analysis report, hazard classifications, hazardous materials, standard operating procedures) and Environmental (e.g. input to environmental review).

Anticipated Sense-Off Demonstration


1. Vendor will demonstrate radar emplacement and displacement process with alignment accuracy.

2. The Sense-Off occurs May-June 2019, with each vendor provided two weeks of range time.

3. The Government is responsible for the WSMR and live target related costs of conducting the Sense-Off.

4. The vendors are responsible for specific costs for participation including, but not limited to, transport, set-up, calibration, target emulators, sustainment, data collection and transfer and system operation.

5. The Government will assess operational viability via Soldier touch-point opportunities.

6. The Government will provide the following Government Furnished Equipment (GFE) and Government Furnished Information (GFI) at the Sense-Off to demonstrate operation with various prime power sources: commercial generator power, PATRIOT EPP, and related interface documentation.

7. The vendors are required to operate, and provide their own integration/interoperability solutions using government furnished commercial generator power (minimum 400KW) and interim tactical power of 150KW maximum (via current PATRIOT EPP).

8. The vendors will provide a target injection unit to facilitate testing of their system. The Government will provide the A/B Interface Test Tool (ABITT) as GFE to demonstrate operation with AIAMD equipment (to support integration and tests).

9. The Government will provide the following GFI to demonstrate operation with AIAMD equipment: Integrated Air and Missile Defense (IAMD) Plug and Fight (P&F) B-Kit to A-Kit Interface Control Document (ICD) and prime power interface documentation (to support integration and tests).

10. For the Sense-Off demonstration, the Government will provide non-TBM and TBM type live targets, Digital Radio Frequency Memory (DRFM) jammer, pole jammer and PAC-3 MSE Radio Support Unit (RSU) Test Set.

11. The vendors will provide all necessary Risk Mitigating Framework (RMF)/Information Assurance (IA) credentials so that approvals are granted (i.e. Interim Authority To Operate (IATO, a test specific ATO), etc.) to connect to WSMR networks. The vendor will satisfy all network connection requirements prior to setup at WSMR.

12. The vendor will support all range requirements to ensure the system can be emplaced (safety, environmental, etc.) as well as authorization to radiate/operate.

13. The vendor will conduct a Test Readiness Review (TRR) at WSMR prior to the Sense-Off demonstration.

Anticipated Sense-Off Evaluation


The Government will evaluate vendor performance against current P-Spec requirements at the Sense-Off, which will be used as part of the Government's evaluation and selection decision under the FY19 ROTI. Both live target testing and digital simulation/target injection will be required to meet these objectives. The Government will provide Sense-Off participants the Draft Sense-Off Evaluation Criteria no later than 14 December 2018. The performance specifications of the evaluation criteria will not change and will be included, for formal response, to all Sense-Off participants no later than 15 March 2019 in the 20-01 ROTI under the applicable technology sub-objective. All Sense-Off participants will receive their demonstration data. The Government will conduct an evaluation to determine which solution performed best against the LTAMDS P-Spec.



1. Power options anticipated to be available are commercial generator power (minimum 400KW) and interim tactical power of 150KW maximum (via current PATRIOT EPP).

2. Radar performance assessments will be prioritized against: commercial generator power and PATRIOT EPP.

3. Radar can demonstrate connectivity and interoperability with AIAMD ABITT.

4. Radar can demonstrate various capabilities via special measurements:

a. Clutter Attenuation

b. Jammer noise cancellation in antenna sidelobes

c. PAC-3 missile datalink transmit/receive

5. Radar can demonstrate the Search/Acquisition functions (under autonomous and cued search) against live and emulated TBM and non-TBM targets across the battle space:

a. Demonstrate search volume or cued search functionality

b. Demonstrate detection range

c. Demonstrate firm track range

6. Radar can demonstrate the tracking function of live targets across the battle space:

a. Show ability to track ballistic targets

b. Show ability to track non-maneuvering and maneuvering targets

c. Demonstrate range & angle measurement accuracy

7. Radar can demonstrate acquisition and track capability of non-TBM in clutter.

8. Radar can demonstrate acquisition and track capability of TBM and non-TBM in Electronic Attack.

https://www.fbo.gov/index?s=opportunity&mode=form&id=24b7712dae3dc64fd43f85717d13a010&tab=core&_cview=0

 

[bring_it_on]

Army sets 2022 LTAMDS fielding date, plans radar competition for next year

The Army is accelerating fielding of the Lower Tier Air and Missile Defense Sensor by five years and planning a radar competition next year at White Sands Missile Range, NM, as part of a new acquisition strategy for the Patriot radar modernization project.

Last week, the Army published a special notice announcing the LTAMDS "sense-off" between May and June, an event that will allow Raytheon and Lockheed Martin to demonstrate their proposed solutions in New Mexico.

"It is the Army's intent to use the sense-off as part of the evaluation to select a single vendor to build and deliver LTAMDS to the Army, supporting achievement of an initial operational capability," according to the notice.

In December 2017, the Army approved an LTAMDS acquisition strategy that pegged initial operational capability in 2027. That date did not sit well with Congress which in the Fiscal Year 2019 Defense Authorization Act moved to penalize the LTAMDS program if the initial fielding date remains later than Dec. 31, 2023.

The Army's new plan pulls the initial fielding day to between July and September of 2022, according to the notice.

In September, the Army tapped Raytheon and Lockheed Martin to advance work on their respective LTAMDS proposals, according to company representatives. The selections were made using other transaction agreements, and the Army has not announced the value of the contracts for the next phase of the program.

Both companies are proceeding into the technology maturation and risk reduction phase of the program, which requires multiple demonstrations as the Army continues to refine its requirement for the Patriot radar replacement.

At press time (Nov. 2), the Army did not respond to a question about whether the updated acquisition strategy opens the sense-off competition to additional vendors.

"The government will provide industry the opportunity to demonstrate engineering and manufacturing development (EMD)-like LTAMDS systems at White Sands Missile Range, NM, in 3QFY19," the notice states. "The demonstration event . . . is a critical element of the acquisition strategy to procure and field LTAMDS."

Among the items the Army will provide for the sense-off are non-tactical ballistic missile targets and tactical ballistic missile type targets and a Digital Radio Frequency Memory jammer, according to the notice.

Companies will be required to ensure their LTAMDS offerings can interoperate with the Integrated Air and Missile Defense Battle Command System Engagement Operations Center, and provide weapon guidance support for the family of Patriot Advanced Capability (PAC)-3 interceptors, according to the notice.

The results from radar competition early next year will be weighed along with digital simulation performance and written proposals and culminate in a single OTA award to a contractor who will then produce six LTAMDS for qualification and fielding.

"This will be followed by a follow-on contract for additional quantities," the notice states.

The new schedule calls for the winning vendor to deliver three production representative radars by the third quarter of FY-21 and another three by the first quarter of FY-22.

The Army then plans to refurbish four of these six radars for initial fielding in 2022, according to the notice.

The Army plans an industry day for the sense-off event Nov. 14-15, according to the notice. -- Jason Sherman

 

[Mark S.]

This article speculates that it may not be a 360 deg. sensor:

https://www.defensenews.com/land/2018/10/31/armys-missile-defense-radar-sense-off-attempts-to-hit-reset-button/

If it won't be what will?

 

[bring_it_on]

I think you will have to wait till next year to find out. OEMs have plans for both a sectored and 360 degree sensor from what I gather so in the end it will come down to what capability the Army needs, and what it decides to prioritize (coverage over range for example, or rotator vs staring sensor etc.) and what it expects to pay (and time-frame) for around 100 radars that it will likely need (although they have identified 20 odd for the current LTAMDS need till 2027).

 

[Mark S.]

What I like is that they may fund two radars based on the results of the demonstrations next year. We could if costs allow we may end up with a hybrid system of starring arrays and a rotator.

 

[bring_it_on]

With the twists and turns that we have had, you can't really rule anything out. We should know more when we get to see what the US Army has included in its FY20 budget materials next year. Currently we have some idea on what Raytheon is planning to offer and it appears that it is a staring radar with 360 degree coverage. Lockheed has so far only shared its Dual aperture antenna proposal and hasn't really shared anything in terms of how it will configure its proposal which it should be fabricating under the TMRR award. My understanding is that the sense off is open to all competitors while the TMRR is only for Raytheon and Lockheed. Maybe the sense off is for them to craft requirements for early fielding but that is just my guess.

 

[Moose]

Looks like they're still wrestling with what they want NOW versus what they want over the long term. A plan which embraces an interim radar in the near term could, and likely would, give on 360 in order to field something off-the-shelf in a workable timeframe.

 

[bring_it_on]

What workable time frame are we talking about here? 8 years, 10 years , 15 years? DARPA and the OEMs have invested a significant amount of money to mature their Gallium Nitride capabilities and capacity to support high performance radars. This is not something that the Army is stuck with in terms of getting the industrial base ready. Even the protracted 3DELRR program expects to begin LRIP by FY21, and FRP by late FY22. The LRDR, Space Fence and AMDR would have been fielded by then as well and the G/ATOR program would be working through its increments and enhancing capability through upgrades. The MDA and export customers too would have received the GaN TPY-2 radars. At some point, the blame for the schedule has to go to the Army. At this pace, we won't get around to actually upgrading the launchers and adding missiles until the 2030s. I wouldn't be surprised, if this ambiguity continues, if the Congress decides to simply put the LTAMDS in the MDA's lap.

 

[bring_it_on]

US Army solicitation suggests new path forward for LTAMDS acquisition

Several weeks after awarding Lockheed Martin and Raytheon contracts to continue developing the Lower Tier Air and Missile Defense Sensor (LTAMDS) system, the US Army appears to have changed course and is re-opening the competition.

On 29 October the army issued a solicitation seeking to conduct a ‘sense-off’ as part of the evaluation to select a single vendor to build and deliver LTAMDS.

An industry day is scheduled for 14–15 November and will be used by the army to determine a vendor’s eligibility to participate in the ‘sense-off’.

Earlier in October, Lockheed Martin and Raytheon announced they had received contracts for the Technology Maturation and Risk Reduction (TMRR) phase of the programme. During TMRR, the two companies were to demonstrate LTAMDS performance through multiple technology demonstrations. The TMRR was scheduled to end in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2020 (FY 2020) and would coincide with Milestone B. However, it appears the army is changing course.

The army did not provide a comment for this article.

The solicitation, however, appears to have caught Lockheed Martin and Raytheon by surprise.

“We are currently evaluating the army’s recent announcement on the LTAMDS programme. We look forward to our continued involvement in the programme and providing a robust sensor solution to support the army’s evolving needs,” a Lockheed Martin spokesperson said.

“Raytheon is in the process of reviewing the FBO [Federal Business Opportunities] solicitation and looks forward to participating in the process that will rapidly offer the army a brand new, full 360° radar that meets the warfighter's requirement for Lower Tier Air and Missile Defense,” Raytheon said in a statement.

The new solicitation could enable Northrop Grumman and Technovative Applications – the two teams the army did not select – as well as radar companies that did not participate in the original LTAMDS competition, an opportunity to develop the system.

Under terms of the solicitation, the army will “provide industry the opportunity to demonstrate engineering and manufacturing evelopment [EMD] like LTAMDS systems at White Sands Missile Range [WSMR], New Mexico”, during May to June 2019, the solicitation said.

Each company will get two weeks of range time during the ‘sense-off’. The army will provide non-Tactical Ballistic Missile (TBM) and TBM-type live targets, Digital Radio Frequency Memory (DRFM) jammer, pole jammer, and Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) Missile Segment Enhancement (MSE) Radio Support Unit (RSU) Test Sets.

The ‘sense-off’, is a critical element of the acquisition strategy to procure and field LTAMDS, the solicitation said.

A key objective of the LTAMDS acquisition programme is to upgrade or replace the current Raytheon Phased Array Tracking Radar to Intercept on Target (Patriot) radars fielded by the army. LTAMDS will interoperate with Northrop Grumman’s Integrated Air and Missile Defense (IAMD) Battle Command System (IBCS) Engagement Operations Center (EOC) and provide weapon guidance support for the family of PAC-3 interceptors.

Results from the ‘sense-off’ and the evaluation of the FY 2019 Request for Ordnance Technology Initiatives proposal will culminate in a Defense Ordnance Technology Consortium Other Transaction Agreement award to a single vendor who will produce six LTAMDS for qualification and fielding to support an initial operational capability in the fourth quarter of FY 2022. This will be followed by a follow-on contract for additional quantities, the solicitation said.

 

[bring_it_on]

Army scraps 360-degree detection LTAMDS requirement, opens competition to all

The Army's newly announced radar "sense-off" in New Mexico will be open to all interested vendors, marking a significant change of plans that effectively opens up a second competitive track in tandem with the Lower Tier Air and Missile Defense Sensor program of record while jettisoning the requirement for 360-degree detection, according to service officials.

On Nov. 7, Army spokeswoman Lisa Hunter said the planned radar competition next year at White Sands Missile Range, NM, will not be limited to Lockheed Martin and Raytheon, which last month were selected by the Army to proceed into the technology maturation and risk-reduction phase of development.

This comes after Brig. Gen. Randall McIntire, Air and Missile Defense Cross Functional Team director, told reporters last month that the Army was fundamentally rethinking the need for a sensor with the ability to detect in all directions.

"360 degrees is not a threshold requirement, it is not a threshold requirement," McIntire told reporters Oct. 10 at the Association of the U.S. Army annual conference. "Increased battle space is of interest to us. What is important? Range and accuracy," the Army one-star general said.

McIntire's comments during meetings with reporters at the AUSA convention last month take on new significance in light of the Army's Oct. 29 notice announcing the LTAMDS "sense-off" which omits any mention of 360-degree detection.

"We've got a really impressive missile: Patriot MSE," the one star general said, referring to the Army's Patriot Missile Segment Enhancement. The Army needs a radar system that can match the "significant capability" of the new interceptor, McIntire said.

The new Patriot interceptor "presses the envelope in terms of what our present-day radars can do for us, so getting a radar that we can get max[imum] benefit out of our newer missiles" is one objective of the LTAMDS, he said.

"We can do defense designs with all of our sensors to create a 360-degree effect; we don't have to get it out of one sensor," McIntire said.

Last month, the Army tapped Raytheon and Lockheed Martin to advance work on their respective LTAMDS proposals, according to company representatives. The selections were made using other transaction agreements (OTA) through a competitive process within the Defense Department's Ordnance Technology Consortium (DOTC). Northrop Grumman and Technovative Applications were both dropped from this part of the LTAMDS competition.

However, since the Army on Oct. 29 announced plans for a new LTAMDS "sense-off," these companies and others, including foreign defense contractors such as Saab or Thales that might team with a U.S. company, have a chance to compete.

The Fiscal Year 2018 National Defense Authorization Act required the Army secretary to deliver an LTAMDS acquisition strategy report to Congress mandating "an acquisition strategy for a 360-degree lower-tier air and missile defense sensor" that address operational requirements and plans to achieve initial operational capability by 2023.

The Army delivered a report, dated September 2018 and marked "for official use only," in response to that directive, according to service spokesman Lt. Col. Jason Brown.

"The Army provides wide technical flexibility via a single top-level LTAMDS Performance Specification based on approved operational requirements," according to an executive summary of the report. "The Army established a competitive environment in the material solutions analysis development phase to improve acquisition outcomes for cost, schedule, performance, and risk management."

"An innovative DOTC OTA contract approach, in conjunction with a competitive radar 'Sense-Off,' captures all trade-off advantages to determine the LTAMDS best-value materiel solution," the report summary states. "All logistics test, systems engineering, and contracting functions are unchanged from the original program plan. Each functional area is adapting minimally to execute a rapid prototyping and rapid acquisition approach."

 

[bring_it_on]

Lockheed Martin conducts initial flight test of new M-SHORAD Future Interceptor

In parallel, Lockheed Martin is now giving specific consideration to the next-generation, or follow-on, to its PAC-3 MSE interceptor, with what it calls the ‘Next-Gen Missile’.

“Next-Gen Missile is currently a Lockheed Martin internal programme, but we are in dialogue with the US Army about where they might want to go with this,” said Cahill. “What is driving the thinking is the need to address high speed, hypersonic, manoeuvring threats – this will be the capability requirement that informs the Next-Gen Missile development. This is still in technology evaluation and algorithm testing stage – so an all-up Next-Gen Missile is a few years out yet,” he added.

 

[bring_it_on]

Lockheed is finishing development and putting the TPY-X into production..Perhaps this could be seen as a companion surveillance sensor to LTAMDS if the Army ever decides that it can afford two sensors..


Lockheed Martin readies its latest L-band radar for production

 

[bring_it_on]

U.S. State Department clears $3.5 billion sale of Patriot missiles to Turkey

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. State Department has approved a possible $3.5 billion sale of Patriot air and missile defense systems to Turkey, the Pentagon said on Tuesday after notifying Congress of the certification.

The Defense Security Cooperation Agency said the State Department had approved the sale of 80 Patriot guidance-enhanced missiles and 60 other missiles to Ankara along with related equipment, including radar sets, engagement control stations and launching stations.

 

[marauder2048]

Orbital Sciences Corp., Chandler, Arizona, is awarded a $46,471,808 modification to a
previously awarded firm-fixed-price, cost reimbursable contract (N00019-18-C-1047)
that exercises an option to procure 15 full-rate production Lot 13 GQM-163A Coyote
supersonic sea skimming target base vehicles, 14 for the Navy and one for the Army.
The Army procured target vehicle will be used to test and evaluate the Lower Tier Air and Missile Defense Sensor,
Limited User Test target system.
...

my emphasis

 

[bring_it_on]

Nice to see they are keeping things on track for an accelerated timeline. Has the GQM-163A been used previously as part of a prior patriot deployment build testing?

 

[sferrin]

Nice to see they are keeping things on track for an accelerated timeline. Has the GQM-163A been used previously as part of a prior patriot deployment build testing?

Hopefully they don't just look at it with a radar, and that they actually try to shoot it down.

 

[bring_it_on]

Eventually it will come to that once the radar is integrated with the software and they are well into developmental and Operational testing. Depending upon what stage the DOT&E's 5th generation aerial target program is then, I'm sure it will also be brought in to try to mimic 5th gen fighters as I remember this was something cited in the original DOTE plans.

 

[bring_it_on]

Army, USMC exploring IBCS-G/ATOR integration; sign of new confidence in IAMD development

The Army is coordinating with the Marine Corps to integrate the Ground/Air Task Oriented Radar (G/ATOR) with the Integrated Air and Missile Defense program, a sign of new confidence by the Army that its $7.9 billion IAMD program -- beset two years ago by a string of serious developmental setbacks and schedule delays -- has turned a corner and is "on track" for fielding in 2022 or sooner.

Col. Philip Rottenborn, project manager for Integrated Air and Missile Defense in the program executive office for missiles and space, disclosed these developments in a Jan. 7 response to reporters' questions about the Integrated Battle Command System -- the IAMD common integrated-fire control element that provides the functional capabilities to control and manage the IAMDS sensors and shooters.

The addition of the Marine Corps' AN/TPS-80 G/ATOR radar would mark an expansion of the baseline IBCS capability, which integrates Patriot radars and launchers with Sentinel radars, and builds on the design of the system which is intended to allow the Army to plug in compatible sensors....

While the IBCS program baseline calls for initial fielding in 2022, Rottenborn said the service might consider pulling that date forward.

"The Army will evaluate early fielding opportunities based upon system performance in near-term developmental testing and operational testing in 2020," he said. "The open architecture enables the warfighter to prioritize requirements beyond the initial baseline."

 

[bring_it_on]

...

 

[bring_it_on]

Companies validate IBCS and CAMM family agile integration for multidomain operations

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. – March 11, 2019 – Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) and MBDA have successfully completed a joint, company-funded effort to incorporate the Common Anti-air Modular Missile (CAMM) family into the Integrated Air and Missile Defense (IAMD) Battle Command System (IBCS). CAMM is the first non-U.S. missile system to be integrated with IBCS.

“This is another demonstration of the ‘any-sensor, any-shooter’ IBCS design that integrates weapons in a short time and at a small fraction of traditional costs,” said Bill Lamb, director, international battle management, Northrop Grumman. “With IBCS as the enabler for next-generation IAMD in the multidomain battlespace, warfighters gain the advantage of leveraging any available sensors and effectors to counter evolving and emerging threats.”

With approval of the U.S. Department of Defense and U.K. Ministry of Defence, Northrop Grumman and MBDA invested internal company funds to demonstrate the integration of the Northrop Grumman-developed IBCS with the MBDA CAMM family of missiles in an affordable and rapid manner. The companies completed functional integration of the end-to-end firing chain for integrated fire control and fire direction configurations between CAMM and IBCS. The effort accomplished all research and development goals of integrating CAMM into the IBCS and reduces risk and costs for full integration.

“This integration further demonstrates how the CAMM family and its associated systems have been designed from the outset for integration into IAMD networks, including with third-party battle management command and control and sensors, allowing the most complex engagement scenarios to be achieved with lower demands on the network and a lower integration burden,” said Michael Mew, ground based air defence programme head, MBDA.

The CAMM family is the next generation of air defense missiles for multidomain applications. Designed to defeat the most challenging of modern and future threats, including saturation attacks by precision-guided munitions and maneuvering high-speed missiles attacking simultaneously from multiple directions, the CAMM family of missiles feature a solid-state active radar seeker, two way data-link, low-signature rocket motor and a 360° soft-vertical launch system.

IBCS creates a paradigm shift for IAMD by replacing legacy stove-piped systems with a next-generation, net-centric approach to better address the evolving complex threat. The system integrates disparate radars and weapons to construct a far more effective IAMD enterprise. IBCS delivers a single integrated air picture with unprecedented accuracy and broadens surveillance and protection areas. With its truly open systems architecture, IBCS allows incorporation of current and future sensors and effectors and interoperability with joint C2 and the ballistic missile defense system.

 

[sferrin]

"The CAMM family is the next generation of air defense missiles for multidomain applications. Designed to defeat the most challenging of modern and future threats, including saturation attacks by precision-guided munitions"

Shooting down a guided bomb with a VL-ASRAAM is not a good trade.