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English Section -24 |
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The News -
IntroScroller
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Written by Prasun K.Sengupta
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Friday, 05 June 2009 |
 RSAF’s Latest ‘Eye In The Sky’ Operational
01/06/09 - tempur jun 2009
The Republic of Singapore Air Force’s (RSAF) 111 Sqn at Tengah Air Base
received its first new-generation airborne early warning and control
(AEW & C) on February 19 from Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI),
thus taking yet another significant step toward becoming a
third-generation network-centric force through the deployment of
new-generation airborne early warning & control platforms and
medium altitude long endurance unmanned aerial vehicles, both of
Israeli origin. The AEW & C platform is IAI’s Gulfstream G-550-based conformal airborne early warning and control (CAEW) system, which is also now being offered to the Indian Navy. The RSAF platforms will operate with the Air Defence and Operations Command (ADOC) during mission execution. Developed by IAI’s ELTA Systems subsidiary, the CAEWS has to date been ordered by Israel and Singapore, with the first Israeli platform being delivered in February 2008 and the second following in May 2008. The RSAF has ordered four such platforms that will be delivered through to 2010. The CAEWS is equipped with the ELTA-built EL/W-2085 system, uses dual-band AESA antennae at the nose and tail, with large slab-sided arrays on the fuselage sides. Together, these give 360° airspace coverage without the complication and drag of a rotodome above the fuselage. Each CAEWS carries six operators, and also has ESM antennae under the tail and wingtips, and above the nose, with a SATCOM array atop the vertical tail. Radar, ESM and COMINT data is collected and fused to give a fully correlated and synthetic air situation picture. The aircraft’s structural, aerodynamic and power modifications, including two additional generators and a low-drag liquid cooling system, are all installed on the aircraft by Gulfstream Aerospace prior to delivery to ELTA, and the mission sensors/management suite is then installed in country by IAI’s Bedek Aviation Group. The CAEWS offers an unrefuelled mission endurance of nine hours when operating at an altitude of 41,000 feet (12,500 metres) and 185km (100nm) away from its parent air base. The AEW & C platform is equipped with two conformally-mounted EL/W-2085 L-band active phased-array radars and two S-band radars giving 360º airspace surveillance coverage. The G-550 CAEWS programme officially took off on August 28, 2003 when Israel’s Ministry of Defence and Gulfstream Aersopace Corp inked a US$473 million contract for the purchase of four G-550s and an additional two aircraft as options. The contract also included logistics support for 10 years at $18 million and an additional 10 years at $26 million as option. These aircraft are the first military application of the G-550. In June 2005, the Israel Defence Forces’ Air Force (IDF-AF) ordered four G-550 CAEWs developed by IAI/ELTA and received the first such aircraft—called Eitam—on September 20, 2006. Each of them is manned by a crew of eight, including two pilots.
The G-550 comes powered by twin BMW-Rolls-Royce BR710 turbofans, and introduces advanced aerodynamic improvements over the G-V business jet with a 250nm increase in range. Both G-V aircraft types—G-500 and G-550—are powered by twin Rolls-Royce BR710 turbofans each rated at 15,385lb of thrust. Taking off from New York, the G-550 spends 14.5 hours to Tokyo while flying at an altitude of 51,000 feet (15,000+ metres) high above commercial traffic, weather and adverse wind. The G-500 can fly 6,750nm (12,000+ km) cruising at Mach 0.8 at altitudes up to 51,000 feet (15,000+ metres) while carrying between 14 and 18 passengers and a crew of two. IAI/ELTA and the Gulfstream Aerospace Corp subsidiary of General Dynamics are presently developing an aerial refuelling tanker variant of the G-550. The idea is to offer a small, agile aerial refuelling tanker that would improve the flexibility of aerial refuelling operations. According to IAI, the G-550 would be able to carry 25,000kg (55,000lb) of fuel. If needed, full-size aerial refuelling tankers like the KC-135, A330MRTT and B.757-300ER would be able to refuel a G-550 tanker to extend its mission. Yet another special missions variant of the G-550 that IAI/ELTA has developed for the IDF-AF—called SEMA—can be used for SIGINT as well as battlespace surveillance. For the latter role, the G-550 can be equipped with ELTA’s EL/M-2060P synthetic aperture radar (SAR) for real-time Ground Moving Target Indication (GTMI). It is believed that the National Technical Research Organisation of India’s external intelligence agency—the Research & Analysis Wing—is interested in acquiring such aircraft in the near future for border surveillance purposes. The EL/M-2060P is capable of tracking hostile ground targets—both stationary and mobile—300km away and using Ku-band and X-band data links for transmitting battlespace reconnaissance data to ground-based Corps-level HQs in real-time. When used for SIGINT missions, the G-550 can be equipped with a belly-mounted EL/I-3001 SIGINT suite that will search, intercept, measure, localise, analyse, classify and monitor short-duration ground and airborne transmissions and their signals parameters—all aimed at building up, in real time, a picture of the electronic order of battle. A lethal combination of asll three types of G-550-based platforms--comprising the CAEW & CS, the SEMA, and the EL/M-2060P-equipped battlespace surveillance system--can thus deliver persistant and total full-spectrum battlespace surveillance.
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Last Updated ( Monday, 27 July 2009 )
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