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BETH STEVENSON BAE Systems (Stands S4-200/240) has signed an agreement to acquire Prismatic, a company it has been working with to develop two unmanned highaltitude pseudo-satellite (HAPS) prototypes. The initial teaming was announced in May
2018, since when the two companies have worked to produce two 35m wingspan solar-powered Persistent High Altitude Solar Aircraft-35 (PHASA-35) prototypes that are being readied at BAE’s Warton, Lancashire site, ahead of flight testing that is expected to take
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place in early 2020. The acquisition is part of BAE’s strategy to invest in disruptive technologies, acquiring companies that develop complementary capabilities that can help to accelerate key technology developments. The investment in Prismatic will
facilitate transitioning the technology to production, with a possibility that it could enter initial operations with customers within 12 months of flight trials, according to BAE. HAPS aircraft are lightweight,
ultra-long endurance aircraft that can fly at high altitudes, carrying out roles that are traditionally taken on by satellites, including persistent surveillance and communications relay. PHASA-35, for example, has the potential to fly at altitudes of 65,000ft for more than a year, according to BAE, and weighs 150kg carrying a 15kg payload. It is powered by the sun during the day, storing energy to power it at night,
and has the potential to be used for the delivery of 5G networks, disaster relief and border protection without the associated costs of launching and operating a satellite. Q
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A new product range from Arralis (Stand N2-461) includes radars and a satellite transceiver, aimed at broadening the RF technology provider’s antenna-based systems. The Corvus E-band beam scanning radar, meanwhile, is said to exceed current market offerings for detection range, elevation resolution and scan area, enabling detection of smaller obstacles such as electricity pylon cables when mounted on platforms including UAVs, armoured vehicles and helicopters. Arralis is dubbing its new Leonis Ka-band uplink/downlink transceiver as the ‘‘future of satellite communications’’ − it is a key component in the delivery of low earth orbit mega constellations and the realisation of worldwide highspeed data communications. Its small sat downlink transceivers
and ground station uplink transceivers deliver gigabit data rates, the company said. The Tucana continuouswaveband altimeter is a collision avoidance frequencymodulated continuous wave radar that can be used on fixed- and rotary-wing manned and unmanned platforms and missiles to provide long- or short-range detection. The Tucana W-band high-resolution imaging radar, on the other hand, is particularly suited to low-visibility navigation. Arralis offers E-band, W-band and Ka-band frequencies integrated into high-resolution radar, altimeters and comms systems. Its technology can be used for enhanced muzzle velocity measurement, safer aircraft landing in poor visibility, 3D target detection of rotorcraft, and enabling Q autonomous vehicles.
10/09/2019 13:18
