The American military managed to correct an important problem of the Patriot air/missile defense system by successfully integrating the LTAMDS radar station with a 360-degree field of view.
The success of this integration was verified during the tests that took place in late October 2024. During the trials, a target simulating a short-range ballistic missile was destroyed using the new radar. Both PAC-3 effector types MSE and CRI managed to hit the target, Defense News reports.
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To add to the story, Defense Express considers it necessary to point out the key takeaways. For starters, we should explain what exactly the Patriot's current main problem is because this will also explain how important the integration of the LTAMDS into this system was.
The thing is, the Patriot's standard radar station, the AN/MPQ-53, has a field of view limited to 90 degrees, which in turn reduces the flexibility of this air defense system in combat conditions.
We can see just how serious the problem was on the example of Ukraine, as one of the developments created under the US-Ukrainian FrankenSAM project was integrating Patriot launchers with Soviet and Ukrainian-type radars. Ukraine's been deploying Patriots to repel russian ballistic missile attack and shoot down valuable enemy aircraft since April 2023.
Another illustrative case is that Belgium ultimately opted for the SAMP/T NG air defense system, which is still in development and won't be ready until at least 2026, instead of Patriot despite a critical need in ground-based air defense.
The Belgians' prime motivation is simple: with the Patriot's limited field of view, they would need to build a full multi-layered air defense network, and the country doesn't have that many resources to make it a reality. SAMP/T NG, on the other hand, offers a full-round view allowing to build a robust enough air defense coverage more economically, with fewer fire units required.
As for the results of the tests mentioned above, the U.S. Army command has already decided to "consider deploying the new radar early to operational units for further evaluation and testing." Various tests of the system equipped with LTAMDS will continue through December 2024.
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