TRAC-A Rotodome AEW Surveillance Radar Antenna

We supply the AN/APA-171 Total Radiation Aperture Control (TRAC-A) AEW antenna to Northrop Grumman Corporation. This highly efficient rotodome antenna is mounted on top of the carrier based E-2C Hawkeye aircraft, providing fleet protection for the United States Navy. The US Coast Guard and the US Customs Service have adapted the capabilities of this reliable antenna for use in anti-narcotics smuggling operations mounted on P-3 Orions. This antenna is also in use by the governments of Japan, Egypt, France, Taiwan, and Singapore. The TRAC-A antenna is the mainstay of the naval AEW arena and has provided the reliability and ruggedness required for carrier based air support.

The antenna consists of a 24-foot rotating, aerodynamic, oblate spheroid radome that contains a UHF surveillance radar antenna, IFF antenna, forward and aft auxiliary antennas, and Satcom antenna. This TRAC-A radar antenna provides extremely low sidelobes to reduce clutter and jammer threats. The low sidelobe level is obtained by the precise amplitude and phase control of 148 dipole elements arranged in a broadside array of 10 endfire arrays, having up to 16 dipoles each. The complexity of this antenna system required that the design be accomplished by use of extensive computer evaluations, taking into account mutual coupling and radome effects . Overall, the antenna contains more than 30,000 precision parts. RF power is fed to the TRAC-A antenna via an eight-channel RF rotary joint, also designed and manufactured by Randtron Antenna Systems. This design features a main channel that carries very high RF power from the transmitter to the antenna. We have delivered over 170 units of the TRAC-A antenna system and continue to provide this important communications tool to the Navy.

We are currently in development of the next generation of advanced detection systems to upgrade the fleet with significant gains in AEW surveillance technology.