The United Kingdom's Royal Air Force (RAF) formally accepted the upgrades completed by Lockheed Martin to two of its long-range solid state defense radars, situated at remote sites in Scotland.

Referred to by the RAF as Type 92, or T92 radar, the transportable radars are early versions of Lockheed Martin's FPS-117 product line and provide air surveillance for the RAF. The two systems, in use since 1979, were nearing the end of their service life in 1996 when the RAF's Air Defense Ground Based Systems (ADGBS) group initiated a series of major upgrades to bring the radars up to equivalent technology with the current systems. Work performed by Lockheed Martin's Syracuse, New York facility included upgrading the radar's signal and data processors and incorporating a new frequency synthesizer.

The Air Defense Ground Based Systems group's continued upgrade to the radar electronics allowed the RAF to maintain state-of-the-art technology and represented a more cost-effective alternative to purchasing entirely new radars, said Ed Lane, Lockheed Martin product support director.

"The most recent upgrades extend the life of these radars until at least 2010, with the potential to go out to 2020," Lane said. "With this solution, the Royal Air Force has current production equipment with logistics support that is compatible with the current FPS-117 and any potential future system expansions."

"The success of this project is an outstanding example of what can be achieved from a long-term partnership between the UK Ministry of Defense and Lockheed Martin," said Paul Lowe, integrated product team leader for the ADGBS.

The FPS-117 is the world standard in long-range 3-D air surveillance radar and is used by the U.S. and many of its NATO allies. Certified by NATO, there are more than 160 FPS-117 systems in operation around the world.

Headquartered in Bethesda, MD, Lockheed Martin employs about 130,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture and integration of advanced technology systems, products and services.

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SOURCE: Lockheed Martin