Selex ES, Finmeccanica’s defence and security electronics business, operates at an international level with more than €3.5 billion in revenues and 17,700 employees. Attending Le Bourget 2013 taking place from 17 to 23 June, the company will present, as part of the Finmeccanica stand and static area (C-65), the latest and most successful solutions in its broad and diversified portfolio.
In particular, Selex ES will focus on its systems, sensors and avionics components that contribute to ISR / ISTAR solutions ranging from UAS to airborne surveillance systems for manned and unmanned aircraft.
These range from the Airborne Tactical Observation and Surveillance (ATOS) and SkyISTAR mission systems and Falco UAS to a family of AESA surveillance radars, represented at Le Bourget by the largest Seaspray E 7500 and the smallest PicoSAR.
Selex ES’s latest generation electronic and mechanically scanning radars have been increasingly successful in the market. They equip over 20 fixed-wing and rotary-wing platforms and nine different UAS.
Also in the ISR / ISTAR systems domain, Selex ES will showcase systems which have been recently introduced to the market such as the compact ELINT / COMINT SAGE and RWR SEER, ideal for helicopters and smaller UAS. Also on show will be the Miysis DIRCM protection system which is characterised by its light weight, small size and ease of integration and the company’s new wide band data link, which features enhanced performance to support the growing needs for data and information downloading and is particularly useful for today’s persistent tactical and strategic surveillance operations.
At Le Bourget, Selex ES will also be promoting the innovative VigilX system; by merging the images from a series of optical sensors arranged around the fuselage of an aircraft or helicopter, it is able to provide 360°visibility "through the hull", which is particularly useful during take-off or landing in very unsafe or low visibility conditions.
Selex ES’s presence in the field of fighter aircraft will also be on show. The company contributes over 60% of on-board electronics for the Eurofighter Typhoon together with important elements of the fighter’s simulation and customer service package. Selex ES also contributes to the SAAB Gripen NG latest generation aircraft, providing the Raven ES AESA radar and the Skyward-G IRST system, an innovative tracking and pointing sensor able to operate in either active or passive mode for stealth operations.
The latest generation of IFF systems will also be on display. Here Selex ES presents the M425 – Mode 5 IFF Transponder and M428 – Compact IFF transponder. The latter is a miniaturized version, operating under mode S, Mode 5 and RT- 200 with a HF Transceiver System for voice and data communication.
Selex ES’s expertise in the field of space is represented by a star tracker, the Spacestar, developed for the Iridium NEXT program, the Lightning Imager (LLI), one of the tools for the third generation of Meteosat, and the Mini maser, the miniaturised version of the innovative atomic clock designed for the Galileo navigation system.
In the civil aviation sector, thanks to Selex ES’s capabilities in integrating complex systems, the company has installed its air traffic control systems in more than 150 countries. As well as Air Traffic Control, Selex ES is also able to design, develop, implement and manage ‘turnkey’ airports: from air traffic management and control to access control, flight information and baggage handling. This is Selex ES’s answer to an increase in passenger traffic and the resulting need to ensure safety in air traffic control and the airport domain.
A demonstration of this new integrated system will also highlight the use of technologies and ‘smart’ systems aimed at achieving greater economic operational and environmental efficiency.
The static area of the show will host the Falco UAS equipped with the Gabbiano radar and the Falco Evo UAS equipped with the PicoSAR AESA radar and Sage RWR. Also on show will be the PCL (Passive Coherent Locator) radar Aulos in the mobile version. Characterised by the absence of its own transmitter, Aulos instead uses opportunity transmitters such as radio stations on the FM band and digital TV broadcasters such as DVB-T. These technological features make the radar environmentally friendly; a "green radar".
Selex ES is also represented in the Beechcraft hangar on board the B350 where visitors will be able to see an ATOS console. ATOS is one of Selex ES’s leading products, in use for over 10 years and currently on board aerial platforms throughout the world. ATOS integrates various sensors and subsystems in an extremely modular design and provides an open architecture that can include additional functions and operator consoles.
Having been selected for the Israeli UAV Hermes 450 and 900, a model of the Gabbiano surveillance radar will also be showcased at the Elbit stand.
During the exhibition, Selex ES’s TETRA communication system will be used throughout the Finmeccanica stand.