14 Juli 2010
The HA100 passive radar from Thales to play a role in protecting the flypast on 14th July in Paris
This year, the Homeland Alerter 100 (HA 100) passive radar developed by Thales has been included as part of the official special air safety system implemented for the 14th July ceremonies in Paris. With a range of 100 kilometres, this radar - which is designed for air surveillance at both low and medium altitudes - has been deployed at the Villacoublay airbase in order to monitor the airspace used for the flypast and maintain its security.
Unlike a traditional radar, the passive radar does not emit its own signal but rather uses the signals emitted by antennas used for radio and television broadcasts that are already present in the environment. It can therefore be deployed without specific frequency allocation. Its low power consumption and the absence of any electromagnetic radiation make it an ecological choice for a radar that is particularly environmentally friendly. This innovative technology seems to be the preferred solution for providing reliable and stable air conditions for detecting small and slow targets such as helicopters, ultralight aircraft and unmanned aerial vehicles, at both low and medium altitudes, and above large built-up areas such as Paris.
Making its first appearance at the Paris Air Show at Le Bourget in June 2007, this radar - which allows a lower detection limit meaning optimum aerial coverage of national territory via a network of active radars - has been implemented by the French Air Force.
Jean-Loïc Galle, SVP in charge of Air Operations at Thales said: "We are delighted to be playing a role in the protection of the flypast on 14 July in Paris in cooperation with the French Air Force. This deployment allows us to implement one of our greatest innovations. The role of radar technician is one of the traditional skills at Thales and, having a major influence in the industry, our ambition is to design ever more high-performance radars that meet operational needs and that are environmentally-friendly, such as the HA 100."
Developed jointly by Thales and French Aerospace Lab ONERA with funding from the French Procurement Agency
in 2005, the HA 100 radar has been tested successfully in France and the rest of Europe since 2007.
(
Thales)
See Also :
Homeland Alerter 100 (HA-100)
Description
The Homeland Alerter 100 is a passive radar sensor using illuminators of opportunity provided by FM radio broadcasts*.* Possible extension with DAB (Digital Audio Broadcast), AVB (Analog Video Broadcast) and DVB-T (Digital Video Broadcast –Terrestrial)
Mission
Facing an ever evolving threat, mainly at low and very low altitude, the Homeland Alerter 100 has been developed to offer operational capabilities for homeland security or projection such as sensitive site (factories, airports,…) protection, high value event surveillance (particularly in an urban environment) and coastal surveillance.
Principles
Radio Frequency (RF) energy of transmitters is scattered from targets, correlated with the direct path signal to provide time difference of arrival (ellipsoide) and doppler measurements.
Passive radar sensor utilizes civilian electromagnetic radiations in order to detect and estimate target parameters (location and speed).
Features
* Detection performances on 360°:
o Range: class 100 km
o Elevation: 90°
o Ceiling: up to 20.000 ft * 24h/7 all weather surveillance
* Configurable for mobile platforms or fixed sites:
o Commercial or 4x4 military vehicle (using car driver licence)
* Stand alone or in network operations
* Connection to Command and Control Centers through Asterix/AWCIES protocol
* Delivered with a software (Aneth) for deployment support and performance prediction
Main benefits
* Detection of low speed, low altitude and stealth flying targets
* High mobility, rapid and flexible deployment
* Totally discrete
* Easy to operate
* Installation allowed in areas where active radars cannot be deployed (explosive areas, …)
* High availability and low life cycle cost due to civil technology (COTS)
* Very low maintenance and logistics
* No Electro-Magnetic Compatibility (EMC) issues
* No ecological restriction (human safety, environment protection)
In service
The Homeland Alerter 100 has already been sold to several NATO countries.