Energy News  
Boeing Super Hornet Demonstrates Network Capability In Multiple JDAM Drop

File photo: A cluster of JDAM bombs await their release.
by Staff Writers
St. Louis MO (SPX) Apr 20, 2006
Boeing [has demonstrated the capability of an F/A-18E/F Super Hornet to provide targeting coordinates to other aircraft using the Raytheon APG-79 Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar system.

During the test at the Naval Air Weapons Center at China Lake, Calif., an AESA-equipped F/A-18F created a long-range, high resolution synthetic aperture radar map and designated four closely-spaced stationary targets.

The aircraft then data-linked two target designations to non-AESA equipped Super Hornets, which successfully delivered four 2,000-lb. Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAM). All four weapons impacted the targets within lethal distance. The targeting Super Hornet then used the AESA to provide highly detailed bomb damage assessments to confirm the hits.

"This demonstration proves some of the capabilities of the Block II Super Hornet we have been talking about," said Capt. Donald "BD" Gaddis, F/A-18 program manager for the U.S. Navy. "This is just one element of the tremendous networking potential of the Block II Super Hornet for our warfighters."

The AESA radar provides the warfighter with higher resolution at much longer ranges than traditional, mechanically scanned arrays. This information enables other aircraft crews to more precisely target weapons for greater accuracy. Additional demonstrations of the Super Hornet's future precision engagement capabilities are planned as part of tests leading to the program's Operational Evaluation later this year.

"We continue to demonstrate the incremental capability improvements we promised from the beginning of the Super Hornet program," says Bob Feldmann, Boeing vice president for the F/A-18 program. "While we will continue to provide future enhancements, this latest milestone demonstrates the affordable capability the F/A-18 program brings to our customer today."

"It's great to see our revolutionary APG-79 AESA radar continue to soundly hit its milestones and sustain Raytheon's commitment to provide the U.S. Navy with 'best of breed' technology harnessed in an unparalleled radar capability," said Erv Grau, vice president, Raytheon Space and Airborne Systems.

"This network targeting demonstration using our APG-79 AESA radar truly shows the force multiplier capacity of an AESA-equipped Super Hornet. This is the first time that target coordinates were generated by one F/A-18 aircraft and passed via data link to other F/A-18 aircraft. Close teamwork among the Navy, Boeing and Raytheon continues to produce superior warfighting capabilities such as this."

Community
Email This Article
Comment On This Article

Related Links
the missing link The latest in Military Technology for the 21st century at SpaceWar.com



Memory Foam Mattress Review
Newsletters :: SpaceDaily :: SpaceWar :: TerraDaily :: Energy Daily
XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News


Howitzer 2000 Tank Lobs V-LAP Projectile Nearly 60 Kilometers
Munich (SPX) Apr 19, 2006
The Howitzer 2000 Tank fired the long-range V-LAP ammunition from DENEL over a distance of more than 56 kilometers during ammunitions tests in South Africa. This result was achieved with six DM72 propellant system modules.







  • China's Three Gorges Dam Nears Completion
  • Making Alternative Fuel Becomes More Efficient with Dual-Catalyst System
  • Growth Rate Tops Consumption
  • First Fuel-Cell Police Car Delivered By Chrysler

  • Russian Scientists Downplay Fallout From Chernobyl Disaster
  • Twenty Years On Effects From Chernobyl Disaster Go On
  • Nuclear Not Only Energy Solution Say Some British Lawmakers
  • Russia Tests Nuclear Turbine In China Without A Hitch

  • The 'Oxygen Imperative'
  • NASA Studies Air Pollution Flowing Into US From Abroad
  • Carbon Balance Killed The Dinos
  • Earth's Turbulence Stirs Things Up Slower Than Expected

  • Developing Nations May Save The Tropical Forest
  • Imported Dream Tree Becomes A Nightmare For Kenya
  • Monkey-Dung Offers Clues About Land-Use, Wildlife Ecology
  • Alaska Timber Projection Study Reveals Market Trends

  • Alternatives To The Use Of Nitrate As A Fertiliser
  • Researchers Trawl The Origins Of Sea Fishing In Northern Europe
  • Greens Happy As EU Tightens GMO Testing
  • Killing Wolves May Not Protect Livestock Efficiently

  • Highly Realistic Driving Simulator Helps Develop Safer Cars
  • Research On The Road To Intelligent Cars
  • Volvo Promises Hybrid Truck Engines Within Three Years
  • Carbon Fiber Cars Could Put US On Highway To Efficiency

  • Aerospace Industry Slow To Embrace New MEMS Technologies
  • BAE Systems To Sell Airbus Stake, EADS Likely Buyers
  • DaimlerChrysler And Lagardere Cut Stake In EADS
  • Lockheed Martin Delivers F-22 Raptor To Second Operational Squadron

  • Could NASA Get To Pluto Faster? Space Expert Says Yes - By Thinking Nuclear
  • NASA plans to send new robot to Jupiter
  • Los Alamos Hopes To Lead New Era Of Nuclear Space Tranportion With Jovian Mission
  • Boeing Selects Leader for Nuclear Space Systems Program

  • The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2006 - SpaceDaily.AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA PortalReports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additionalcopyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by SpaceDaily on any Web page published or hosted by SpaceDaily. Privacy Statement