British Typhoon fighters to get the state-of-the-art ECRS Mk2 radars

UK Royal Air Force fighters are to receive next-generation radars as part of an upgrade program.

This was reported by the Ministry of Defense of the United Kingdom.

The Ministry of Defense of the United Kingdom has approved investment in the development of a new on-board radar system for the Eurofighter Typhoon multirole fighter.

At the end of the decade, new ECRS Mk2 radars will replace the Captor E-Scan radars currently used by Typhoon fighters.

The cost of the investment program for the development of a new radar system is £2.35 billion ($2.83 billion).

The Ministry said the ECRS radar, or European Common Radar System Mk2, should provide the fourth-generation Eurofighter Typhoon fighters with the ability to counter emerging threats “until 2040 and beyond if required.”

The state-of-the-art radar will allow the aircraft to simultaneously detect, identify and track multiple targets in the air and on the ground in the most challenging operational environments.

The radar will enable pilots to suppress enemy air defenses using high-powered jamming and engage targets whilst beyond the reach of threats.

Leonardo company, which is involved in the project with BAE Systems, explained that the multi-function antenna array (MFA) of the ECRS Mk2 will provide “electronic warfare capability, including broadband electronic attack” to detect and jam enemy radars.

The radar’s ability to blind enemy aircraft will allow the Typhoon to fly aerial missions in enemy airspace.

In addition, the longer range of the ECRS Mk2 compared to other radars allows the fighter to detect enemy aircraft while remaining beyond the range of the enemy’s air defense systems.

Under the investment, Typhoon will be enhanced with the latest mission management and cockpit interface so “the radar’s range of capabilities can be exploited, as well as an updated navigation system and enemy radar jamming technology.”