Vienna, VA., 27 September 2023 – Sensor solutions provider HENSOLDT recently concluded a demonstration of its passive radar capabilities as part of a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) in collaboration with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
The system demonstration took place in Miami, FL. Using its fixed receiver and one mobile receiver, HENSOLDT recorded multiple days’ worth of data using different system configurations. The Twinvis data will be compared to current Airport Surveillance Radars (ASR-8/9/11) to assess whether passive surveillance technology provides comparable performance to terminal surveillance radars used today for Air Traffic Control (ATC). In addition, further accuracy checks will be conducted using Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) data. If successful, passive radar may offer significant cost savings over traditional ASR radars.
“The demonstrations under the CRADA illustrated Hensoldt’s unique passive radar solution to the FAA. HENSOLDT expects to show equivalent performance can be achieved with a much smaller footprint compared to traditional active radar systems. In addition, Twinvis may prove superior within the area of wind parks where other means of surveillance are often blind,” says Frank Bernhardt, Head of Passive Radar at HENSOLDT.
As a follow on to the trials performed in Miami, the FAA and HENSOLDT will conduct another measurement campaign specifically geared towards evaluating the system performance in wind farm environments.
HENSOLDT’s highly sensitive Twinvis passive radar system can monitor airspace within a large radius without emitting any signals itself, requiring less power, no moving parts, and less maintenance than currently used active radar systems. The Twinvis system provides instantaneous 360-degree coverage and update rates of 1 second. For more information on Twinvis, please visit Twinvis Passive Radar | HENSOLDT