Raytheon's Air & Missile Defense Radar Tracks Simultaneous Missile Targets for the First Time

Estimated reading time: 1 minute

Raytheon Company's AN/SPY-6(V) Air and Missile Defense Radar acquired and tracked multiple threat-representative targets simultaneously during its third dedicated flight test at the U.S. Navy's Pacific Missile Range Facility, Kauai, Hawaii.

Test success proved AN/SPY-6(V) integrated air and missile defense performance against a short-range ballistic missile target and multiple anti-ship cruise missile targets. The radar searched for, detected and tracked all targets from launch throughout their flights. The test demonstrated the radar's sensitivity and resource management, a critical multi-mission capability to extend the battlespace and safeguard the fleet from multiple threats.

"The speed, range, trajectory and complexity of multiple targets proved no match for AN/SPY-6 – it acquired and tracked them all," said Raytheon's Tad Dickenson, AN/SPY-6(V) program director. "It was truly gratifying for our government-Raytheon team to see the culmination of our engineering efforts in action, and achieve our third straight success." 

"This radar was specifically designed to handle ballistic missiles and cruise missiles simultaneously and it's doing just that," said U.S. Navy Captain Seiko Okano, Major Program Manager for Above Water Sensors, Program Executive Office Integrated Warfare Systems. "AMDR is successfully demonstrating performance in a series of increasingly difficult test events and is on track to deliver advanced capability to the Navy's first Flight III Destroyer."

Successes for AN/SPY-6 continue to stack up, following its second ballistic missile test flight in July. The radar has now demonstrated its performance against an array of singular and simultaneous live targets of increasing complexity, including integrated air and missile defense targets of opportunity, satellites and aircraft. 

About Raytheon

Raytheon Company, with 2016 sales of $24 billion and 63,000 employees, is a technology and innovation leader specializing in defense, civil government and cybersecurity solutions. With a history of innovation spanning 95 years, Raytheon provides state-of-the-art electronics, mission systems integration, C5ITM products and services, sensing, effects, and mission support for customers in more than 80 countries.