The US Army has initiated talks with Northrop Grumman to adopt its AN/TPS-80 Ground/Air Task Oriented Radar (G/ATOR), following strong performance reviews and high operational demand from the US Marine Corps.
The development comes amid the Virginia-based defense giant’s success in delivering 43 of 60 ordered G/ATOR units to the US military, primarily serving the marine forces alongside five assigned to the air force and one designated for navy testing.
Washington signed those shipments through a series of deals, including a low-rate initial production contract in 2014 and a full-rate production order in 2019.
“Demand for the system in theater right now is high, and it’s based on that performance,” Defense News quoted Northrop Grumman Mission Systems Director Paul Weaver as saying during a media call in early October.
He noted that hardware and software upgrades have extended the platform’s detection range and improved its tracking of unmanned aerial systems and cruise missiles in complex domains.
While the army has not formally committed to an acquisition program, Weaver verified recent engagements at the headquarters level, highlighting the platform’s service-wide appeal.
“When you put a number of these systems in the field, operating in a complementary way, you can stay in constant movement and complicate the adversary’s target cycle,” he said.
“That is of interest to every service that’s currently in conflict right now.”
The AN/TPS-80 Radar
The 9,000-pound (4,082-kilogram) multi-mission radar consolidates air defense, counter-battery target tracking, and air traffic control into a single transportable system.
Built to fit inside a C-130 Hercules cargo plane and an MV-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft, a four-person crew can set up the unit in under 10 minutes.
AN/TPS-80 has 360-degree coverage, a detection reach of approximately 160 kilometers (99 miles), and a tracking range of about 120 kilometers (75 miles).