Real-Time Aerial Mapping of Non-Emitting Threats

ELTA Systems, a subsidiary of Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), unveiled its new Passive Coherent Location System (PCL) on 27 October.

The system enables the creation of an air situation picture that tracks non-emitting targets using non-cooperative transmitters. It detects and tracks aerial threats, based on target reflection from non-cooperative transmissions from FM or Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB) towers. The reflections are received by one or a network of antennas, providing 3D real-time omnidirectional coverage for tracking multiple targets in congested airborne traffic.

The PCL system is simple to deploy and can be located on remote borders, as well as in urban areas. Installation can include single or multiple sensors, for redundancy and improved coverage of specific areas of interest. The sites are connected to a central PCL C2 processing unit via a dedicated data link.

Adi Dulberg, VP and General Manager of IAI/ELTA’s Intelligence, Communications and EW division, explained that the system “[…]detects and classifies aerial risks without unveiling the locator. The PCL system creates [an] air situation picture and can be deployed independently or as an additional layer for air control radars, as part of a multi-disciplinary air situation picture.”