Army Accepts Last Persistent Threat Detection System Aerostat | Aero-News Network
Aero-News Network
RSS icon RSS feed
podcast icon MP3 podcast
Subscribe Aero-News e-mail Newsletter Subscribe

Airborne Unlimited -- Most Recent Daily Episodes

Episode Date

Airborne-Monday

Airborne-Tuesday

Airborne-Wednesday Airborne-Thursday

Airborne-Friday

Airborne On YouTube

Airborne-Unlimited-05.13.24

Airborne-NextGen-05.07.24

Airborne-Unlimited-05.08.24 Airborne-FlightTraining-05.09.24

Airborne-Unlimited-05.10.24

Thu, Jul 05, 2012

Army Accepts Last Persistent Threat Detection System Aerostat

Airship Provides Visual And Audio Battlefield Surveillance

The Persistent Threat Detection System entered its next chapter, May 29, as Lt. Col. Michael Parodi, product manager Meteorological and Target Identification, was on hand at the Lockheed Martin facility in Dayton, Ohio; to accept the delivery of the last PTDS ordered. Since its original introduction as a quick reaction capability the Army has procured 66 systems that have been used in both Iraq and Afghanistan.

Persistent Threat Detection System, or PTDS, is a large aerostat tethered to a mooring platform, which is accompanied by a Ground Control Station, or GCS. The system is equipped with both visual and audio surveillance technology. Since the Civil War, when Union Soldiers utilized hot air balloons to serve as a surveillance platform, lighter than air technology has been a part of the Army's inventory. As U.S. forces began a troop surge in Afghanistan while maintaining security in Iraq the need to provide soldiers with a persistent view of the battlefield was paramount.

In 2008, then-Secretary of Defense Robert Gates directed an Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance, or ISR, surge dedicated to providing Soldiers with the ability to understand their environment. One of the systems that was fielded to support the ISR surge was PTDS. "PTDS has proven to be a great asset for Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines as well as our coalition partners serving in harm's way." said Parodi. "They have been instrumental in providing mission overwatch, detecting [improvised explosive devices] and assisting in the capture of numerous high value targets and weapons caches."

PTDS acts as a force multiplier for commanders on the ground as it can be utilized to scan large areas of terrain for potential insurgent activity while interacting with various other sensors to give a complete picture of potential threats. Information collected by the system is distributed to soldiers via various routes including the Distributed Common Ground System-Army, or DCGS-A; which is an intelligence tool. Convoy protection, counter-improvised explosive device and a real-time perspective of engagements with the enemy are amongst the roles PTDS play for troops on the ground. "Our commanders in the field have incorporated PTDS into many of their missions including force protection; while local citizens recognize the platform provides an unblinking eye keeping watch for insurgent activity," noted Parodi.

The system operates 24 hours a day utilizing a crew of five operators working 12 hours shifts. With an ability to reach heights that are out of the range of most enemy threats, PTDS offers the user a vast perspective of the battlefield. Since its original fielding the system has seen numerous improvements including the addition of a second sensor to provide greater ISR coverage as well as improvements to the aerostat itself, better weather effects survivability and weather forecasting, increased lift and payload capability, and improved network and equipment connectivity.

(U.S. Army photo)

FMI: www.army.mil

Advertisement

More News

Bolen Gives Congress a Rare Thumbs-Up

Aviation Governance Secured...At Least For a While The National Business Aviation Association similarly applauded the passage of the FAA's recent reauthorization, contentedly recou>[...]

The SportPlane Resource Guide RETURNS!!!!

Emphasis On Growing The Future of Aviation Through Concentration on 'AFFORDABLE FLYERS' It's been a number of years since the Latest Edition of Jim Campbell's HUGE SportPlane Resou>[...]

Buying Sprees Continue: Textron eAviation Takes On Amazilia Aerospace

Amazilia Aerospace GmbH, Develops Digital Flight Control, Flight Guidance And Vehicle Management Systems Textron eAviation has acquired substantially all the assets of Amazilia Aer>[...]

Hawker 4000 Bizjets Gain Nav System, Data Link STC

Honeywell's Primus Brings New Tools and Niceties for Hawker Operators Hawker 4000 business jet operators have a new installation on the table, now that the FAA has granted an STC f>[...]

Echodyne Gets BVLOS Waiver for AiRanger Aircraft

Company Celebrates Niche-but-Important Advancement in Industry Standards Echodyne has announced full integration of its proprietary 'EchoFlight' radar into the e American Aerospace>[...]

blog comments powered by Disqus



Advertisement

Advertisement

Podcasts

Advertisement

© 2007 - 2024 Web Development & Design by Pauli Systems, LC