HANSCOM AIR FORCE BASE, Mass. (April 12, 1996) -- Electronic Systems Center is developing a program that will result in what is believed to be the first dual-band, sea- and land-based radar system.
The Cobra Gemini program will acquire three X- and S-band radar systems that can detect, acquire, track and collect both high-precision metric and signature data on targets of interest.
"We've formed an acquisition team composed of Electronic Systems Center, MIT Lincoln Laboratory and the MITRE Corporation to develop and fabricate a prototype system," said Maj. Donald R. Landing, Cobra Gemini program manager in ESC's Surveillance and Control Systems Directorate.
"After we go through prototype development, a competitive production contract will be awarded in 1998 to build two more systems and complete integration of a second U.S. Military Sealift Command modified oceanographic survey ship," Landing said. The 224-foot long ships were formerly used by the Navy in a sensor array mission.
An option in the contract could fund up to 10 of the radar systems.
Testing of the ground-based prototype is expected to be complete by mid-1998 and aboard ship by early 1999. The three radar systems in the initial contract will each be sea- or shore-capable and will be air-transportable aboard U.S. military cargo planes.
"The system is intended to be used to detect launches of 'rest of world' missiles in the Scud class," Landing said. "Cobra Gemini will help control the proliferation of these missiles." The system will use a two frequency dish-based radar.
Lincoln Laboratory is expected to use a number of legacy systems that will be integrated into the radar systems. Program officials said they will use a streamlined acquisition process and work closely with the user, the Defense Intelligence Agency's Central Management and Signatures Intelligence office, to further speed the process.
"Cobra Gemini is not a replacement for Cobra Judy, ESC's other ship-board program. Cobra Judy looks for intercontinental ballistic missiles and Cobra Gemini will look for 'rest of world' missiles," Landing said.
The prototype system is expected to be ready within two years of contract start and the full complement of three production systems, modified ships and other related equipment available to the Air Intelligence Agency by the year 2001.
"To make sure this process goes smoothly, we held an industry day last September and briefed more than 30 companies on the program. We'll hold another this coming fall to make sure all of the interested companies are up to speed on the program," Landing said.
For more information, contact Roy Heitman via email- heitmanr@Radium-VS1.hanscom.af.mil
or at ESC's Office of Public Affairs - (617) 377-4466