System is one step closer to installation on US Navy’s first Flight III guided missile destroyer
Raytheon press release
The 14’ by 14’ modular array will deliver unprecedented integrated air and missile defense and air defense capabilities to Flight III guided missile destroyers and seven types of U.S. Navy ships.
“The goal of near-field range testing is to increase integration speed, drive out risk and ensure SPY-6 is primed for installation. When SPY-6 radar arrays leave our radar development facility, they are ready to defend the surface fleet.”
Scott Spence, senior director of Naval Radar Systems
Before leaving the automated, 30,000 square-foot radar development facility, all SPY-6 arrays undergo extensive testing that includes:
- Operational health evaluation of more than 5,000 transmit and receive radiating elements
- Alignment and calibration of nearly 150 subarray channels and 5,000 radar elements
- Collection and validation of over 42,000 “golden database” parameters that allows automatic recalibration of the array during at-sea maintenance
- Collection, analysis and verification of over 300 transmit and receive array beam patterns
Raytheon Missiles & Defense has invested more than $500 million in infrastructure and capacity enhancements, including advanced automation technology, for SPY-6 since the program’s inception. Additional construction on expanded production areas dedicated to transmit/receive integrated microwave modules and radio frequency heads – key radar components – will be completed this year.
