AN/APR-39D(V)2 to equip US Army
On 14th December Northrop Grumman was awarded a $124.7 million contract for the supply of its AN/APR-39D(V)2 radar warning receiver and electronic warfare management system to equip US Army and US Navy combat aircraft.
According to official US government documents the AN/APR-39D(V)2 is intended to equip “attack, reconnaissance, utility, and cargo rotary-wing aircraft, along with selected fixed- wing aircraft” in US Navy and US Army service, initially being fielded on the US Army’s Boeing AH-64E GUARDIAN attack helicopters from 2018, and the force’s so-called ‘Special Electronic Mission Aircraft’ (SEMA), principally its DeHavilland EO-5B/C SEMA communications intelligence and multi-sensor turboprop transports and Beechcraft RC-12 series airborne signals intelligence platforms, according to the US Army.
US governmental documentation continues that the AN/APR-39D(V)2 will be used to “detect, categorize, and prioritize Radio Frequency (RF) emitters, and provide a visual/aural alert to aircrew members warning them of targeting by threat RF systems.” Additionally, MT’s sources state that the system will cover a waveband of two gigahertz (GHz) to circa 60GHz for high band radar threats, and a waveband of 60 megahertz to two gigahertz for low band RF threats.
Thomas Withington
