Japan to receive Leonardo SIT-422/5J
Leonardo-Finmeccanica is to supply its SIT-422/5J interrogator to the Japan Ground Self Defense Force (JGSDF) under a deal announced on 12 July.
The SIT-422/5J will form part of an Identification Friend or Foe (IFF) system that allows troops to distinguish between friendly vehicles and potential threats. The SIT-422/5J will send out interrogation signals to aircraft detected by Japanese radar to determine if the target is friendly or enemy aircraft.
Leonardo will partner with a prime contractor in Japan to deliver the technology and will provide the necessary support to enable in-country service-level maintenance of the equipment.
SIT-422/5J includes a Selective Identification Feature (SIF), Mode C, Mode S, Mode 4 and the new Mode 5. Mode 5 is the most advanced military-only identification mode, which modifies and addresses known shortcomings of the legacy Mode 4 systems.
The interrogator system is based on ‘external crypto appliqué technology’, meaning that the crypto element of the system (which provides secure encryption of the IFF signal) is a separate unit that can be removed and securely stored as needed.