Raytheon to build microwave antenna system to defeat airborne threats
Deliveries of the systems will be expected in FY2024 and FY2026. (Photo: Raytheon)
Raytheon will build two systems for the US Navy and US Air Force as part of the DARPA Directed Energy Front-line Electromagnetic Neutralization and Defeat (DEFEND) programme.
Raytheon, an RTX business, will design, build and test two high-power microwave (HPM) antenna systems that will use directed energy to defeat airborne threats at the speed of light. The systems will be designed to be rugged and transportable for front-line deployment.
Under the three-year, US$31.3 million contract from the Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division, Raytheon will deliver prototype systems to the US Navy (USN) and US Air Force (USAF) as part of the DEFEND programme.
Colin Whelan, president of Raytheon Advanced Technology, said: ‘The new iterations of Raytheon’s high-power microwave systems are cost-effective and reliable solutions that operate at the speed of light – [providing better defence] against faster and more manoeuvrable threats.’
Work will be conducted in coordination with the USAF Research Lab, USN Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division and the undersecretary of defense for research and engineering.
The new HPM prototype systems build on Raytheon’s decades of experience developing capabilities such as the Counter-Electronic High Power Microwave Extended Range Air Base Defense, known as CHIMERA.
Prototypes will be expected to be delivered in FY2024 and FY2026.
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