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Operation Desert Storm:
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TARGET SENSOR TECHNOLOGIES Appendix IX
RADAR -------------------------------------------------------- Appendix IX:1 Radar systems vary from older, low-resolution ground-mapping radars on the F-111F and B-52 to much newer, high-resolution target detection synthetic aperture radar on the F-15E. The basic forms of radar are pulse and continuous-wave types. Both detect targets by transmitting radio waves and then searching for return radio waves reflected from those targets in order to determine information about the location and speed of targets. ELECTRO-OPTICAL -------------------------------------------------------- Appendix IX:2 Electro-optical systems exist as a sensor on munitions, such as the EO version of the Maverick missile, and as separate systems, such as night vision goggles. EO-guided weapons carry a miniature TV sensor or camera in the nose that senses targets that provide suitable visible (dark or light) contrasts. Night-viewing systems operate by magnifying the tiny amount of light available from the sky, even in the darkest night. INFRARED -------------------------------------------------------- Appendix IX:3 Imaging infrared systems are sometimes integral to the aircraft (Pave Tack, TRAM, and FLIR/DLIR on the F-111F, A-6E, and F-117, respectively) and are sometimes a part of a pod or munition attached to the exterior of the aircraft (such as LANTIRN for the F-15E and F-16 and the IR version of Maverick on the A-10). IR systems lock onto targets by focusing on heat sources. Imaging IR systems are virtually infrared TV cameras, which create a heat image of a target and then rely on signal processing to lock onto a designated part of the heat image, rather than simply the hottest part of the image, as nonimaging IR systems do. OTHER SENSOR SYSTEMS -------------------------------------------------------- Appendix IX:4 Other sensor systems using the technologies discussed above were employed in Desert Storm, and other technologies were used to supplement, or supplant, the systems described above. These systems were not integral to the aircraft, themselves, nor to the munitions carried by them; they were mostly either on separate platforms used before or concurrently with the strike aircraft, or they consisted of additional equipment employed by pilots. In the former category were target images provided by intelligence or reconnaissance sensors and sometimes made available to aircrew at the mission planning stage. Pilots of virtually all aircraft reported that receipt of such images and target planning materials were extremely important for mission planning, target study, and mission success, although needed materials were often unavailable or of poor quality. Pilots of aircraft delivering guided munitions stated this was especially true for them because they were often tasked to attack a specific building, or a section of a building, and they needed the aids and cues available in target images to ensure accurate selection of the desired aimpoint. While hardly a technology, a key "sensor system" was human vision. Although limited to clear weather, pilots from several aircraft reported confidence that they could hit a target, even with unguided bombs, as long as they could see it. At night, some pilots attempted to target visually by using illumination flares. Varying success with this method was reported by some A-10 and F/A-18 pilots, while A-6E pilots said they found it nearly impossible to find targets using flares. Another system used by pilots, especially those in aircraft without infrared systems (A-10 and F/A-18), was handheld binoculars during the day and night vision goggles at night. With binoculars, pilots reported varying levels of success in finding and identifying targets from medium and high altitude during the day. Binoculars required unimpeded clear weather conditions and imposed a high workload on pilots in single seat aircraft. Pilots also reported that night vision goggles were ineffective for identifying valid targets on the ground at 10,000 feet or higher.
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