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Advanced Tactical Airborne Reconnaissance System (ATARS)
The Advanced Tactical Airborne Reconnaissance System (ATARS) has been successfully deployed in Kosovo and most recently in Operation Iraqi Freedom. Operational on U.S. Marine Corps F/A-18s, ATARS provides high resolution imagery for real/near-real-time reconnaissance, strike and bomb-damage assessment in a single mission. The ATARS medium Altitude Sensor also is in production for the U.S. Air Force F-16 TARS Reconnaissance System. ATARS also has been demonstrated on the F-15 and the F-4 aircraft.
On the F/A-18D (RC) aircraft, the ATARS system fully integrates low-altitude electro-optical and medium-altitude electro-optical sensors for daylight operations, an infrared linescanner (IRLS) for day and night operations, and the synthetic aperture radar modes of the APG-73 radar for all-weather reconnaissance. ATARS also includes a centerline-mounted data link pod providing near-real-time transmitting of the three digital imaging sensors and SAR image data.
The ATARS digital sensors allow the aircrew to obtain high resolution imagery from 5 miles standoff, horizon-to-horizon. The Reconnaissance Management System provides control of the sensors, recorders and data link, manages the flow of data from the sensors to the digital recorders for a total image recording time of 92 minutes, and from the data link to the ground station or to the cockpit for review by the aircrew. The system can be pre-programmed to automatically collect imagery of 12 point, area, or strip targets in addition to 20 targets of opportunity manually selected by the aircrew.
ATARS sensors at a glance
The ATARS low- and medium-altitude electro-optical sensors and infrared linescanner modernize reconnaissance forces with an integrated day/night below-the-weather capability. The system contains a suite of three digital sensors and associated hardware which can be easily reconfigured to fit a variety of airborne platforms. ATARS provides high-resolution visible and IR spectrum strip-mode imagery for high-speed tactical aerial reconnaissance.
Features
- Single mission effectiveness
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- Pre-strike target reconnaissance
- Ordnance delivery
- Bomb-damage assessment
- Integrated sensors for day/night, below-the-weather reconnaissance
- High-resolution imagery in real/near-real time
- Easily reconfigurable to fit a variety of airborne platforms
Applications
- Pre-strike target reconnaissance
- Ordnance delivery
- Bomb-damage assessment
