Indian Navy's P-81 aircraft to be armed with new US radars

Indian Navy's new long range maritime reconnaissance aircraft P-81 will come armed with new generation American AN/APY-10 radars, giving it the capability to provide ultra-high resolutions of targets over seas and land.

The new radars made by US defence and aerospace major Raytheon are being installed on the P-81 aircraft, the first of which the Indian Navy will receive by 2012.

Raytheon has bagged a contract from Boeing for developing these new long-range, multi-mission radars for the sophisticated P-8I surveillance aircraft, the company has said.

"The maritime and overland surveillance radar, APY-10, will be put on Boeing's P-8I being built for the Indian Navy. This is the first international contract award for Raytheon's programme, extending the company's considerable presence in the international maritime surveillance market," said Tim Carey, vice president of Raytheon's Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance Systems.

India signed a $2.1 billion deal with top aircraft manufacturer Boeing for eight P-8I planes in 2009. The first of the aircraft is scheduled to be delivered to India in 2012.

"Our APY-10 radar will provide the Indian Navy with proven, low-risk technology built on generations of successful Raytheon radar systems," Carey, who is here to attend Farnborough International Air Show, one of the largest in the world, said.

"We are committed to providing reliable systems that keep our customer safe and help them achieve mission success," he said.

The APY-10 radar delivers accurate and actionable information in all weather, day and night, for anti-submarine and anti-surface warship operations and for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance mission support, said Neil K Peterson, Raytheon's director of strategy and business development.

A member of of the industry team that Boeing leads for the US navy's P-8A programme, Raytheon is also under contract with Boeing to provide six APY-10 systems and spares for the P-8A, of which the P-8I is a variant. Four of the six radar systems have been delivered and Raytheon remains on or ahead of the production schedule, said Peterson.

"The radar we will be giving to the Indian Navy's planes will have more features than those with The US Navy," he said.

The radars will be able to work at significantly tactical ranges and also detect small targets.

They will be capable of image targeting at very long ranges and also be able to carry out overall land operations including in the coastal regions.

Asked about the value of the radar deal with Boeing, Peterson said, "We can't disclose this as yet. We are working out all the details."