Company Partners with Collins to Supply Type 163 LTDs

Leonardo Australia has signed an agreement with Collins Aerospace to supply Type 163 laser target designators (LTDs) to the Australian Defence Force (ADF).

This is the second order of Type 163s from the ADF, and will be fulfilled in the second quarter of this year. No contract value has been disclosed, nor is there any confirmation of the number of LTDs to be supplied. More than 800 Type 163 LTDs are in use with 27 countries. The system’s modular architecture makes upgrades more straightforward, the most recent major development being changes to the human-machine interface to enable digitally assisted close air support (DACAS) operations to be conducted using the system.

The lightweight, compact Type 163 was designed by Leonardo’s team in Edinburgh, and leverages technologies developed for targeting systems deployed on the F-35 and the AH-64. The Type 163 packages elements of these capabilities in a small, lightweight (2.3kg), easily portable form that can be used by Forward Air Controllers/Joint Terminal Attack Controllers (FACs/JTACs) and Joint Fires Observers (JFOs) and which meets the mission requirements of those roles. It is capable of accurately controlling weapons on to targets at ranges of up to 10 kilometres.