APAR multifunction radar passes F.A.T. with flying colours
11 April 2011
The first APAR Multi Function Radar for the Royal Danish Navy was subjected to the Factory Acceptance Test (FAT) at the Thales premises in Hengelo, the Netherlands. The test, witnessed by DALO (Danish Defence Acquisition and Logistics Organization) representatives was a resounding success: also after its technology refresh, APAR has proven to comply with all customer requirements.
The APAR Multi Function Radar is being installed, in accordance with the schedule agreed upon, on the Peter Willemoes, the second of the Iver Huitfeldt class frigates that are currently being built for the Royal Danish Navy. The first ship, the Iver Huitfeldt, is already sailing, but without APAR. The FAT for the second APAR system is scheduled to take place in August of this year and the third early 2012.
The APAR on board of the Iver Huitfeldt class frigates is a part of Thales’s well-proven Anti Air Warfare suite (AAW) that consists of the APAR Multi-Function Radar, the SMART-L Volume Search Radar and the Fire Control Cluster. Similar AAW suites have been installed on the four “De Zeven Provinciën” class vessels of the Royal Netherlands Navy and the three “Sachsen” class vessels of the German Navy and have repeatedly demonstrated their effectiveness, also during multi-target attack scenarios.
However, the FAT was not a simple repetition of the Dutch and German FATs. The development of APAR has continued and state-of-the-art technology has been introduced to the antenna and processing units.
The DALO delegation that attended the APAR Factory Acceptance Test at the Thales premises, was impressed by APAR’s performance. The entire test cycle was executed without any flaw and DALO is confident that APAR will be a valuable and reliable asset on the Iver Huitfeldt class frigates. Following the success of Thales’ SMART-S Mk2 surveillance radar on the Absalon class ships and the absolutely trouble-free FATs of the three SMART-L Volume Search Radars last year, DALO has come to know Thales as a reliable supplier of high-quality products.
The three SMART-L radar FATs were performed in 2010 and these systems have been delivered to the shipyard.
About APAR
APAR (Active Phased Array Radar) is a Multi Function Radar (MFR) capable of fulfilling various tasks simultaneously; automatic detection and tracking of low altitude targets (e.g. seaskimmers), detection and tracking of air targets together with the missile guidance support. It is particularly designed to cope with the terminal guidance requirements of SM-2 and ESSM missiles.
The APAR antenna consists of four arrays, each array composed of more than 3000 very small radar transmitter/receiver (T/R) elements. The combination of T/R modules in one array can generate narrow beams that can be pointed in any direction within a cone of about 120 degrees in azimuth and 85 degrees in elevation. Combined, the four arrays cover the full 360 degrees. Switching from one beam to another can be done very rapidly. The use of so many T/R modules gives this radar a unique performance and high operational availability.
The inherent agility of APAR guarantees a high performance in the most adverse conditions, under severe electronic protection measures, and is advantageous in the gathering of more specific information regarding detected targets
About Thales
Thales is a global technology leader for the Defence & Security and the Aerospace & Transport markets. In 2010, the company generated revenues of €13.1 billion with 68,000 employees in 50 countries. With its 22,500 engineers and researchers, Thales has a unique capability to design, develop and deploy equipment, systems and services that meet the most complex security requirements. Thales has an exceptional international footprint, with operations around the world working with customers as local partners. www.thalesgroup.com
Thales Nederland employs about 2,000 staff members. The company, established in 1922, is one of the leading companies in integrated naval systems for surveillance, weapon control, combat management and system integration worldwide. www.thalesgroup.com/nl
Press contact:
Frank van de Wiel
Thales Nederland
+31 74 24 82 951
frank.vandewiel@nl.thalesgroup.com
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