Electronic Warfare Test
Abstract
Readily available, infrared (IR) seeking, man-portable air defense systems (MANPADS) are difficult to detect and pose an imminent and lethal threat to military aircraft of all types. Our ability to counter such threats is essential to owning the airspace in theater. Therefore, the ability to test missile warning systems (MWS), hostile fire indicators, IR countermeasures (IRCM), and advanced threat sensors is critical to our national defense. Additionally, a new generation of enemy radio frequency (RF) missile seekers is both currently fielded and in further development, requiring a correspondingly new generation of test technologies to test the latest countermeasures. The test and evaluation (T&E) community is required to test IRCM and RF countermeasure systems in a repeatable manner with ground-truth data before and after integration into warfighting systems. Without new test technologies, the Department of Defense (DoD) will be unable to perform adequate T&E of advanced warning and countermeasure systems. The technology development efforts within the EWT project have been prioritized to align with DoD guidance on science and technology priority investments. As such, the EWT project is focusing on the test needs in both the electro-optic (EO), including IR, and the RF threat domains. Additionally, development of core test technologies in this area can be leveraged to meet other EO and RF test requirements, such as in fire control systems, reconnaissance sensors, and missile seeker subsystems. The EWT project develops test technologies to stimulate IRCM and RF system sensors through the high-fidelity simulation of scenes viewed by the sensors. Stimulation can be as simple as testing to see if a system under test responds to an image or as complex as simulating complex battle space phenomena to measure the response of a system under test in a more relevant, cluttered scenario. Simulations and stimulations are used at open air ranges and in installed system test facilities (ISTF), and in hardware-in-the-loop (HWIL) test beds.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Project
- Publication Date
- Oct 01, 2015
- Source ID
- 3_0603941D8Z_3_0400_PB_2015
Related Documents
- Root: Test and Evaluation/Science and Technology
- Child Accomplishment: Electronic Warfare Test