Calls E-9A System The "Most Advanced Airborne Phased Array Antenna"

King Aerospace has developed what it says is the most advanced phased array antenna technology ever to be installed in an airborne application.  King is solely responsible for development, certification and installation of the system onboard United States Air Force (USAF) E-9A surveillance aircraft.

"This new phased array antenna technology is the sensor of the future," said Jerry King-Echevarria, Chairman and Founder of King Aerospace.  "It utilizes advanced software architecture to achieve flexibility and enhancements without having to replace expensive existing hardware."

The new antenna system, which utilizes a digital beam forming telemetry technology, essentially doubles the number of targets it can acquire and track, going from five to 10 spatially separated targets traveling at speeds up to Mach 5 each.

King-Echevarria said the technology that comprises the new system is far-reaching and incredibly flexible. He said King Aerospace engineers briefed the concept in a white paper at the International Telemetry Conference in 2007 and was received as being a revolutionary design.

"By utilizing field programmable Gate Array technology the team was able to achieve a design which can conform to future requirements without removing or adding additional hardware", King-Echevarria explained. "Our technicians integrated this complex system into the E-9A platform with no impact to the customer and the aircraft mission while still maintaining the legacy system on the sister E-9A fleet." 

FMI: www.kingaerospace.com