Aircraft Survivability Development

Abstract

The Aircraft Survivability Development budget line includes Common Missile Warning System (EE4), Aircraft Survivability Equipment Development (EE3), and Common IR Counter Measure (EB4). EE4: The US Army operational requirements concept for Aviation Infrared (IR) countermeasure systems is known as the Suite of Integrated Infrared Countermeasures (SIIRCM). SIIRCM is an integrated warning and countermeasure system to enhance aircraft survivability against IR-guided threat missile systems. The Common Missile Warning System (CMWS) is a core element of the SIIRCM concept. CMWS is an integrated ultraviolet (UV) missile warning system, with an Improved Countermeasure Dispenser (ICMD) serving as a subsystem to a host aircraft. The CMWS program is a UV missile warning system that cues both flare and laser-based countermeasures to defeat incoming IR-seeking missiles and will alert aircrews to the presence of certain incoming unguided munitions. The B-Kit consists of the components which perform the missile detection and aircrew notification, unguided munitions detection and aircrew notification, false alarm rejection, and countermeasure employment/cueing functions of the system. The CMWS Electronic Control Unit (ECU) receives UV missile detection data from Electro-Optic Missile Sensors (EOMS) and sends a missile alert signal to warn aircrews via on-board avionics. Tier 1 threat missiles detected and tracked by the CMWS are subsequently defeated by a combination of missile seeker countermeasures, including decoy flares and IR Laser Jamming (currently ATIRCM-equipped CH-47 platform only). In addition, the CMWS ECU receives from the EOMS unguided munitions detection data which it also passes to the aircrew through aural and visual alerts. The aircrew then applies the appropriate Tactics, Techniques and Procedures (TTPs) to break contact or engage the enemy with own-ship ordnance. The CMWS Generation 3 (Gen 3) ECU in conjunction with ongoing software development efforts will address outstanding material release conditions to achieve a Full Material Release (FMR) for CMWS and ensure protection against emerging IR-guided missile threats. The A-Kit for CMWS includes mounting hardware, wiring harnesses, cables, and other components necessary to install and interface the mission kit on host aircraft. The A-Kit ensures the mission kit is functionally and physically operational with a specific host aircraft type. EE3: The objective of the Aircraft Survivability Equipment (ASE) Development project is to improve Radio Frequency (RF) ASE for Army aviation. The APR-39 Radar Warning Receiver (RWR) detects, categorizes, and prioritizes Radio Frequency (RF) emitters and provides a visual / aural alert to aircrew members warning them of targeting by RF-guided weapons. The Milestone Decision Authority (MDA) approved Phases 1 and 2 of a 3-phased path forward. Phase 1 serves as an obsolescence / sustainment upgrade to the Processor Line Replaceable Unit (LRU) of the AN/APR-39A(V) Radar Warning Receiver (RWR) implemented to ensure that the currently fielded system remains viable until affordable improved RF ASE capability can be pursued in Phases 2 and 3. Phase 2, RWR Modernization, adopts the ongoing United States Navy Class I RWR Engineering Change Proposal (ECP), commonly referred to as the APR-39D(V)2 system. APR-39D(V)2 will significantly improve the near-spherical RF threat coverage, automatic detection and identification of threat types, bearing, and lethality. Under Phase 2, the Army will develop enhancements to the APR-39D(V)2, including integrated suite control functionality, threat correlation and off-boarding capability, and hardware modifications required to maintain planned integrated jamming growth capability. Phase 3 adds active Electronic Countermeasures (ECM) jamming capability for selected aircraft; Materiel Development Decision (MDD) for this ECM jamming capability phase is not expected until later in the Future Years Defense Program (FYDP). EB4: The Common Infrared Countermeasure (CIRCM) is an infrared (IR) countermeasure system that interfaces with a Missile Warning System (MWS) to provide near spherical coverage of the host platform in order to defeat IR threat missiles. The CIRCM will provide the sole acquisition of future laser-based IR countermeasure systems for all rotary-wing, tilt-rotor, and small fixed-wing aircraft across the Department of Defense. The US Army's concept of CIRCM is part of the Suite of Integrated Infrared Countermeasures (SIIRCM). The core components of the SIIRCM concept are: a Missile Warning System (MWS), IR expendables countermeasures (flares) and a laser-based IRCM. The SIIRCM detects, declares and initiates IRCM against IR-guided Surface-to-Air Missiles (SAM) or Air-to-Air Missiles (AAM). The CIRCM is the next generation of the laser-based IRCM component and will interface with both the Army's Common Missile Warning System (CMWS) and the Navy's Joint and Allied Threat Awareness System (JATAS). CIRCM was approved to be funded to the Director, Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation Independent Cost Estimate (CAPE ICE) through Milestone B (MS B) per Defense Acquisition Executive Acquisition Decision Memorandum (DAE) (ADM), December 28, 2011. The A-Kit for CIRCM includes mounting hardware, wiring harnesses, cables, and other components necessary to install and interface the mission kit on host aircraft. The A-Kit ensures the mission kit is functionally and physically operational with a specific host aircraft type. The CIRCM B-Kit is the mission kit (laser, pointer tracker, and controller) required to achieve near spherical coverage for an aircraft. EE4 Justification: Fiscal Year (FY) 2015 Base RDT&E dollars in the amount of $2.311 million supports development engineering of the Threat Analysis Database (TAD) and integration with other Aircraft Survivability Equipment systems. EE3 Justification: Fiscal Year (FY) 2015 Base RDT&E funding of $14.846 million funds testing of Phase 2 APR-39D(V)2 RWR prototypes, Mission Data Set (MDS) development, continued platform integration on AH-64E, and integration with other ASE systems. EB4 Jsutification: Fiscal Year 2015 Base RDT&E in the amount of $128.252 million supports the Engineering and Manufacturing Development (EMD) phase to include platform integration as well as integration with other Aircraft Survivability Equipment (ASE) systems.

Document Details

• Document Type: R2 Budgetary Justification
• Publication Date: Oct 01, 2015
• Source ID: 0605035A_5_2040_PB_2015
• Service Agency Name: Army

Entities

Organizations

• United States Army

Tags

Communities of Interest

• Air Platforms
• Sensors
• Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

• Acquisition
• Aircrafts
• Budgets
• Contracts
• Cost Analysis
• Cost Estimates
• Countermeasures
• Detection
• Detectors
• Electronic Countermeasures
• Elements
• Fixed Wing Aircraft
• Infrared Countermeasures
• Infrared Decoys
• Munitions
• Test And Evaluation
• Warning Systems

Readers

• Aerospace Engineering

Technology Areas

• Directed Energy
• Microelectronics
• Microelectronics - Microelectromechanical Systems