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Five Innovative New Military Avionics Upgrade Programs to Watch in 2022

The start of the year provides an opportunity to analyze and review some of the ongoing military avionics upgrade programs that are occurring right now.

The start of the year provides an opportunity to analyze and review some of the ongoing military avionics upgrade programs that are occurring right now. Here, Avionics International highlights five innovative new avionics technologies that are being introduced to military fixed, rotary-wing, and unmanned aircraft over the last year.

This list has not been compiled in any type of ranking order, and it features some of the latest reporting on some of these programs compiled by Defense Daily, a sister publication to Avionics.

U.S. Navy Looks to Upgrade E-2Ds So It Lasts Into 2040s

An E-2D Advanced Hawkeye assigned to Air Test and Evaluation Squadron 20 lands aboard the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78)., marking the first time an E-2D had landed aboard the Ford. CVN-78 is conducting aircraft compatibility testing to continued testing the EMALS and AAG launch and recovery systems. U.S. Navy

The U.S. Navy is working on plans to sustain the Northrop Grumman E-2D Advanced Hawkeye aircraft into the 2040s via several upgrades as production is set to sunset within five years.

“The U.S. aircraft E-2Ds will stop rolling off the line in FY ’26; we’re starting to shut down in ’23, the last U.S. E-2Ds will roll off the line in ‘26. French will be right behind it in ’27. So that gives us a little bit of an extension but…linking capacity back to readiness—how are we going to sustain this platform through the 2040s?” Capt. Pete Arrobio, manager of the E-2/C-2 Airborne Command and Control Systems Program Office (PMA-231), said during a presentation held at the Navy League’s annual Sea Air Space expo in August 2021.

The Navy currently has 48 E-2Ds with three more set to deliver this calendar year. It has a warfighter requirement of 86 and is currently funded for 78 that are expected to be fielded by 2025.

The office is planning to upgrade the E-2D via a set of “delta system software configurations,” or DSSC builds, which—given the current software and systems on the aircraft—takes about four years from initiating an idea to deployment on the aircraft, Arrobio said. That means new DSSC builds will come out every two years.

The service is currently wrapping up fielding DSSC 3, with four more E-2Ds left to convert from DSSC 2. After that is complete, PMA-231 will start rolling out DSSC 3.1 to introduce the Joint Tactical Radio System and Link 16 so the aircraft can meet Pentagon-mandated cybersecurity standards. Next, in FY ‘23 DSSC 4 will be introduced, which will add improvements to data fusion, GPS and radar.

French Air Force, Navy to Upgrade Rafale Jets

Thales has been awarded the contract to supply Scorpion® helmet-mounted sight and display systems and digital multi-function displays for all the Dassault Aviation Rafale aircraft in service with the French Air and Space Force and the French Navy. Dassault Aviation - A. Pecchi

In July 2021, Thales announced a new contract award from the French defense procurement agency (DGA) to provide 350 Scorpion helmet-mounted sight and display systems and 400 digital multi-function displays. The cockpit and helmet displays are being added as upgrades to the current in-service fleet of Dassault Aviation Rafale aircraft being operated by the French Air and Space Force and the French Navy.

"Coupled with the aircraft's weapon systems, the Scorpion helmet-mounted sight and display enhances tactical situational awareness and enables crews to respond more quickly and with greater agility to a whole range of threats," according to a press release announcing the contract for Thales.

Thales has been tasked with using the multi-function displays to replace the lateral displays on the in-service Rafale fleet, which are "primarily used to inform the pilot about the status of the aircraft's systems and provide imagery from its onboard sensors," according to the French avionics manufacturer. The new equipment offers a larger display area, an improved touchscreen interface and greater processing power.

One innovative aspect of the upgrade is how French Rafale pilots will now have increased tactical situational awareness and access to the aircraft's weapon or mission systems within their line of sight using the new helmet-mounted displays.

"Future aircrews will have to analyze more data in less time on combat missions carried out in increasingly complex environments," Thales notes.

Boeing Receives Integration Contract for Japan F-15MJ Fighters

A Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) F-15MJ Eagle assigned to the 304th Squadron, Naha Air Base, Japan, lands at Andersen AFB, Guam on Feb. 11, 2020. U.S. Air Force

The U.S. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, has awarded Boeing a $471 million contract under Japan’s Super Interceptor program “for the design and development of an integrated suite of aircraft systems to support modification of the Japan Air Self Defense Force F-15MJ aircraft and the development, test, and delivery of four Weapon System Trainers,” DoD said in a Dec. 30 contract announcement.

Boeing is to perform the contract work through 2028 in St. Louis. Under a licensing agreement, Mitsubishi builds the Japanese versions of the Boeing F-15.

In 2019, the State Department approved a $4.5 billion deal with Japan to upgrade up to 98 of the fighters to the Japanese Super Interceptor (JSI) configuration. The upgrades are to improve Japan’s air-to-air defense of the country.

The JSI configuration would include the sale of up to 103 Raytheon Technologies APG-82(v)1 Active Electronically Scanned Array radars, 116 Honeywell Advanced Display Core Processor II mission system computers and 101 BAE Systems ALQ-239 Digital Electronic Warfare Systems.

The upgrades for Japan’s F-15s could also include Selective Availability Anti-spoofing Modules (SAASM), Collins Aerospace ARC-210 radios, and Joint Mission Planning Systems.

U.S. Air Force Seeks Commercial Sources for Repair of TH-1H Altimeter

A U.S. Air Force ROTC cadet sits in a TH-1H helicopter during a 2018 orientation at Keesler AFB, Miss. U.S. Air Force

The Air Force Materiel Command’s (AFMC) Warner Robins Air Logistics Complex at Robins AFB, Georgia, is conducting market research to determine whether the command will be able to use commercial sources to repair the altimeter for the Air Force TH-1H training helicopter.

The service has 28 Bell TH-1Hs at Cairns Field at Ft. Rucker, Alabama, to train prospective Air Force helicopter pilots. The TH-1H is a renovated UH-1H with a digital cockpit, a more powerful engine, and a new nose and tail boom.

The Horizon Aerospace altimeter for the TH-1H “is a servo-controlled instrument which measures altitude by dial indication transmitted by synchro from a remote source,” per a sources sought notice published by AFMC on Nov. 1. “The transmitted altitude may be pressure altitude as derived from an air data computer or other suitable transmitter. It employs a zero-setting system to permit the altimeter to be set at zero altitude at an existing ground level. The item incorporates an automatic standby feature which will revert to direct static pressure actuation, indicated by a warning signal in the event of electrical malfunctions or at the pilot’s option.”

“The item is designed for use in aircraft where accuracy is required to meet altitude separation requirements,” AFMC said. “This assembly has special characteristics which, if not conforming to the original design of the part, could cause failed functionality of the altimeter. Because of the complexity of this item and the lack of proprietary data, including test procedures, it is in the best interest of the government to seek existing commercial capabilities to meet this agency need rather than to independently establish the required technical data to perform this work-scope organically.”

AFMC said that the TH-1H’s glass cockpit and other upgrades allow prospective Air Force helicopter pilots to transition easily from the TH-1H “to a follow-on rotary wing aircraft such as the HH-60G Pave Hawk, CV-22, and future Combat Search and Rescue-X helicopters.”

Saab to Deliver Upgrade for Hungarian Gripen Fleet

Saab is providing the MS20 Block 2 capability upgrade to the Hungarian fleet of Gripen fighter aircraft. Saab

The Hungarian Government Commissioner Office responsible for defense development and the Swedish Defense Materiel Administration (FMV) have successfully completed the negotiations for the MS20 Block 2 capability upgrade to the Hungarian fleet of Gripen fighter aircraft. Saab will deliver the upgrade, according to a Jan. 12 announcement from the Swedish aerospace and defense manufacturer.

The goal of the MS20 Block 2 upgrade is to increase both the Gripen’s combat and communication capabilities, as well as access to a wide range of weapons that can be integrated on Hungarian Air Force (HunAF) Gripen fighters, according to Saab. Sensor capability is being enhanced by a radar upgrade to the PS-05/A Mk 4 which means that the air-to-air target tracking range as well as the performance increases significantly. This allows better detection capability of small air- to-air targets and improved clutter suppression, and it brings growth potential for further developments in the air-to air and air-to-ground modes.

"The MS20 Block 2 upgrade for HunAF Gripen fleet also enhances the communication capabilities by enhancing Link16 (NATO Data link) functionality and updated voice communication to the latest NATO secure communication standard," Saab said in a Jan. 12 press release. "Capability to identify coalition aircrafts will be also improved by introducing the latest Identification Friend or Foe (IFF) NATO Mode 5."

Additionally, the upgrade will allow Hungary to choose from a wider selection of weapons to be integrated into their Gripens: IRIS-T —infrared Within Visual Range (WVR) Air to Air missile, GBU-49—modern Air to Ground laser guided bomb, and Meteor—an advanced, long-range, radar-guided BVRAAM that is superior to other missiles of its type, according to Saab.

"Thanks to the modernization of the Hungarian Gripen aircraft, the operational capabilities of the Hungarian Air Force will be significantly increased. Our staff has appreciated a close and fruitful cooperation with the Swedish side on this specific modernization project as well as the cooperation during the 15 years that we have operated Gripen aircraft,” Major General Nandor Kilian, HDF Air Force Inspector, said in a statement.