US defense company Raytheon has completed work on the first radar antenna array for the US Army’s new Lower Tier Air and Missile Defense Sensor(LTAMDS).
The company noted it completed the work less than 120 days after the US Army selected Raytheon to build LTAMDS, a next-generation radar that is expected to be capable of defeating advanced threats like hypersonic weapons.
LTAMDS is a simultaneous 360-degree, active electronically scanned array radar powered by the company’s Gallium Nitride circuits.
The LTAMDS primary array, similar in size to the Patriot radar array, will provide more than twice its performance. Following testing, the radar array will be mounted on a precision-machined enclosure for integration and further evaluation.
The US Army plans to field the new radar to the first Patriot battalion by the 4th quarter of fiscal year 2022. A total of 15 battalions are to be fielded by 2031. LTAMDS will be compatible with the Integrated Air and Missile Defense Battle Command System or IBCS, which is the army’s number one priority for modernizing air defense.
Once the IBCS is operational, it will compile fire-control level data from multiple different types of sensors to a common command and control system, benefiting systems like the Terminal High Altitude Air Defense (THAAD), Patriot and the Short Range Air Defense (SHORAD) system.
“Raytheon’s employees and partners are focused on delivering the first LTAMDS by the Army’s Urgent Material Release date because we know how important expanded battlespace coverage and other capabilities are to the men and women in uniform,” said Tom Laliberty, vice president of Integrated Air and Missile Defense at Raytheon’s Integrated Defense Systems business.
