The U.S. Air Force (USAF) has awarded an Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (ID/IQ) contract to Raytheon Company for the world’s first all-digital radar warning receiver, the AN/ALR-69A(V).
The contract calls for the rapid procurement of 779 units or more for the USAF fleet of tactical air and large body aircraft.
The AN/ALR-69A(V) enhances aircrew survivability, by providing “sensors forward” situational awareness at lower costs than competing systems through simple software modifications, without the need for any hardware modifications, in order to extend the USAF fleet’s operability well into the future.
“The ALR-69A provides USAF pilots the situational awareness required to operate in current and future complex emitter environments,” said Travis Slocumb, vice president, Raytheon Electronic Warfare Systems.
“We will continue to upgrade the receiver and add machine learning-based modules so the system can autonomously adapt to new threats.”
The ALR-69A(V) features capabilities previously unattainable in a tactical RWR: suppression of enemy air defenses, easy cross-platform integration, enhanced spectral and spatial coverage for high-sensitivity detection in dense signal environments, and most recently single-ship geolocation.
(Raytheon has demonstrated that a new version of its AN/ALR-69A radar warning receiver that can geo-locate threat radar emitters with only one aircraft. Courtesy of Military Power and YouTube. Posted on Apr 14, 2018)
Modular, Open Architecture
Raytheon designed the ALR-69A(V) for the utmost flexibility and growth potential, using advanced broadband digital receiver technology and an open architecture design, the ALR-69A(V) enhances traditional RWR performance while enabling new missions for the host aircraft.
The design of Raytheon’s ALR-69A(V) allows cross-platform commonality, improved spectral and spatial coverage and easy integration with other ECM or radar systems.
The ALR-69A(V) design relies on many commercial off-the-shelf components, allowing for ready expansion or upgrade.
The extensive use of COTS parts and digital circuitry also ensures affordability and reliability while it minimizes any risk of parts obsolescence and lowering life-cycle maintenance costs.
The 16-channel broadband receiver can easily be reconfigured to support future applications, and as converter technology continues to improve, users can boost response time and dynamic range by simply replacing a digital circuit card.
Extra, pre-wired card slots enable interfaces to any electronic countermeasure or radar system.
360 Coverage
Its 360-degree coverage is provided by each of the four receivers. Each one containing a wideband digital channelized receiver, providing signal selectivity and high sensitivity in dense signal environments.
The combination of narrow receiver channels and a large number of channels provides the selectivity needed for high sensitivity and management of interference while ensuring rapid coverage of the threat spectrum and rapid response time.
The result is unparalleled radio frequency compatibility, improved detection range and accurate, unambiguous identification of friend versus foe in dense signal environments comprised of both threat signals and those from wingmen, coalition partners and commercial operations.
(Learn More. Experience a 360 3-D virtual reality of suppression of enemy air defenses mission from the perspective of an F-16 fighter pilot, employing airborne electronic attack and electronic self-protect, along with a full suite of Raytheon products. Courtesy of Raytheon and YouTube. Posted on Aug 15, 2017)
Single-ship Geolocation
Without any hardware modifications, the ALR-69A(V) can now offer aircrews more options with its single-ship geolocation capability, a first for any RWR.
Before this added capability, aircrews only had a rough direction of the arrival of the threat signals.
Now the ALR-69A(V) gives them precise information on ground-based threat locations and precision-direction finding for airborne threats.
This added capability enables the ALR-69A to assist with targeting solutions while continuing to identify threats in dense signal environments.
The system can identify threats in dense signal environments while assisting with targeting solutions.
Currently being tested on the F-16 and installed on the U.S. Air Force C-130H, KC-46A, ALR-69A is compatible with virtually any airborne platform.
