April 9, 2003 (by Lieven Dewitte) -
The U.S. Air Force is testing a new radar that will let F-16 pilots detect and locate targets on the ground for attack with precision-guided weapons. The APG-68(V)9 multimode radar, built by Northrop Grumman, is now the standard radar version on all Lockheed Martin F-16 Advanced Block 50/52 aircraft.
This new radar significantly enhances the F-16's combat capability. The resolution of the radar's ground-mapping mode is the highest of any production fighter in the world. F-16 pilots will be able to detect, recognize and accurately locate targets for attack using precision weapons.
Flight-testing of the radar began a year ago. Testing of the radar's synthetic aperture mode, which provides the high-resolution ground mapping, was conducted last year on a Northrop Grumman BAC1-11 "flying test bed" aircraft.
The latest tests at Edwards are to verify that the synthetic aperture mode works well in the F-16, without interfering with other equipment.
The synthetic aperture mode should increase the range at which the F-16 can detect targets and the detail in which they are shown, said Maj. Todd Ericson, F-16 project pilot for APG-68V(9) radar development.
Ericson said the radar is showing good potential in this early phase of testing.
The radar also can detect other aircraft at a greater distance and is expected to be more reliable, officials said.
Also, application of advanced processing techniques enhances the radar's ability to operate in area where there are many electromagnetic transmissions, as from other radars and radios, and to resist jamming.
The new radar takes advantage of current commercial off-the-shelf technology, both in hardware and software, which provides a fivefold increase in processing speed and tenfold increase in memory from the previous APG-68 production radar, officials said.
Several countries have ordered more than 200 of the advanced F-16 Block 50/52 version.
