American aerospace firm Lockheed Martin has demonstrated the integration of its SPY-7 radar into the Aegis missile defense system.
Overseen by the US Missile Defense Agency and the US Navy Aegis Technical Representative, the integration effectively executed the processing needed for detecting, tracking, and neutralizing ballistic missile threats.
The demonstration also displayed how the newly modified system guides interceptors to neutralize aerial threats.
According to Lockheed, the successful test of the ballistic missile defense fire control loop is a “key milestone” in the development of the radar-outfitted Aegis weapon system.
“The SPY-7 radar brings superior capability to sea or land-based platforms, utilizing proven production technology scaled from the Long-Range Discrimination Radar, which recently achieved initial fielding in Clear, Alaska,” company official Joe Depietro stated in a press release.
Lockheed Martin is now modifying its production test center facility in New Jersey to prepare for another live SPY-7 radar integration for Japan’s Aegis System Equipped Vessel (ASEV) program.
The SPY-7 Radar
The “backbone” of multiple land, sea, and air defense systems, the SPY-7 is a scalable radar that can defend against both ballistic and anti-air missiles.
The radar shares the same core technology as the Long-Range Discrimination Radar, providing several times the performance of traditional SPY-1 radars. The system can simultaneously detect, track, and engage multiple threats.
The SPY-7 can be configured for various applications, including the efficient insertion of new capabilities without hardware changes.
“Today’s warfighters face ever-increasing threats and require the latest technology to identify, track, and respond appropriately,” the company said on its website. “SPY-7 radar is the most advanced technology that will provide the capability to make these decisions – accurately and quickly.”
The Aegis Missile Defense System
Currently equipped with SPY-1 radar and variants of the Standard Missile-3, the Aegis Missile Defense System is an integrated naval weapon system that provides air and fleet defense against enemy aircraft and cruise missiles.
It uses a variety of ship defense systems, including the Phalanx close-in weapon system and Tomahawk land-attack cruise missiles.
The system is integrated on US Navy Ticonderoga-class cruisers and Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers. The land-based variant, Aegis Ashore, is currently deployed in Romania as part of the NATO missile defense system.