BAE maps out geo-location solution

BAE Systems has demonstrated a passive geo-location capability that enables aircraft to quickly and accurately identify enemy positions in crowded radio frequency (RF) environments. The equipment can be deployed on any type of military aircraft.

The company showed for the first time the ability to nearly instantaneously construct a geo-location solution, without the need for multiple aircraft to simultaneously receive the same pulse of an enemy radar signal. The new capability, demonstrated at the US Naval Air Warfare Centre Weapons Division in California, enables aircraft to calculate geo-location with any radio frequency (RF) signal.

‘The battlespace is a complex environment that is increasingly saturated with RF energy. These conditions make it hard for multiple aircraft to simultaneously detect the same signal,’ said Dr. Hugh Kao, BAE Systems technical director. ‘The technology we have demonstrated enables accurate real-time geo-location of threat signals from bits and pieces of data.’

The capability has already been tested in a series of flights. The US Department of Defence’s Joint Strike Fighter programme office supported the flight testing, which was accomplished with a single T-39 aircraft and a ground station performing as a virtual aircraft.