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British Aerospace Nimrod AEW3
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British Aerospace Nimrod AEW3
The British Aerospace Nimrod AEW3 was a proposed airborne early warning (AEW) aircraft which was to provide airborne radar cover for the air defence of the United Kingdom by the Royal Air Force (RAF). The project was designed to use the existing Nimrod airframe, in use with the RAF as a maritime patrol aircraft, combined with a new radar system and avionics package developed by Marconi Avionics.
The Nimrod AEW project proved to be hugely complex and expensive as a result of the difficulties of producing new radar and computer systems and integrating them successfully into the Nimrod airframe. The project was eventually cancelled, with the RAF instead purchasing new build Boeing E-3 Sentry aircraft to fulfil the AEW requirement.
In the mid 1960s, following the development of the Grumman E-2 Hawkeye carrier-borne AEW aircraft and its associated systems, the British government began looking for a radar system that could provide airborne early warning for the United Kingdom. At the time, the only recognised AEW aircraft in British service was the Fairey Gannet aircraft used by the Fleet Air Arm on board Royal Navy aircraft carriers. These were fitted with the AN/APS-20 Radar, which had been developed during World War II and was rapidly becoming obsolete. Work had been started in the early 1960s on a brand new AEW platform for the Royal Navy to replace the Gannet that would encompass both a new type of radar system mounted on a new aircraft, the P.139. While the defence cuts of the mid-1960s led to the cancellation of the P.139, work continued on a British designed radar system. Meanwhile, it was decided that the RAF needed an AEW aircraft to operate as part of the national air defence strategy.
To fulfill the planned requirements for a new AEW aircraft, the government had a number of factors to consider:
Designers at Hawker Siddeley Aviation came up with a proposal that would see the FMICW radar system installed using a Fore Aft Scanner System in the new Nimrod aircraft. This proposal was rejected as being too expensive, with instead a proposal to convert surplus Andover transport aircraft. This was also rejected due to the potential cost of development.
In the interim, to provide a land based AEW aircraft, radar systems from withdrawn Royal Navy Gannets were installed in similarly surplus Avro Shackleton maritime patrol aircraft and entered service from 1972. Around the same time, it was decided not to proceed with FMICW technology as the basis of an AEW system, as research from the United States Air Force (USAF) had shown that pulse-Doppler radar was superior and would be used in the Boeing E-3 Sentry then under development. As a consequence, the idea of a new land-based AEW aircraft for the RAF was re-examined, and again it was decided that the Nimrod met the requirements.
The decision was taken to procure the aircraft fitted with a pulse-Doppler radar system, which then proceeded to a range of options:
The fourth option would maintain both employment and Britain's position at the forefront of radar technology and development; however it was also riskier than purchasing an "off the shelf" product or spreading the risk across multiple partners. In 1977, the US had made an offer to NATO for purchasing several of the new E-3 Sentry aircraft, which were being delivered to the USAF; this was intended to provide airborne early warning cover for Europe's NATO nations without having to rely on the United States, and eventually came into being as the NATO E-3A Component, which was planned to be stationed in the United Kingdom. However, the complex multi-lateral negotiations eventually led the United Kingdom to pursue the all-British development.
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British Aerospace Nimrod AEW3
The British Aerospace Nimrod AEW3 was a proposed airborne early warning (AEW) aircraft which was to provide airborne radar cover for the air defence of the United Kingdom by the Royal Air Force (RAF). The project was designed to use the existing Nimrod airframe, in use with the RAF as a maritime patrol aircraft, combined with a new radar system and avionics package developed by Marconi Avionics.
The Nimrod AEW project proved to be hugely complex and expensive as a result of the difficulties of producing new radar and computer systems and integrating them successfully into the Nimrod airframe. The project was eventually cancelled, with the RAF instead purchasing new build Boeing E-3 Sentry aircraft to fulfil the AEW requirement.
In the mid 1960s, following the development of the Grumman E-2 Hawkeye carrier-borne AEW aircraft and its associated systems, the British government began looking for a radar system that could provide airborne early warning for the United Kingdom. At the time, the only recognised AEW aircraft in British service was the Fairey Gannet aircraft used by the Fleet Air Arm on board Royal Navy aircraft carriers. These were fitted with the AN/APS-20 Radar, which had been developed during World War II and was rapidly becoming obsolete. Work had been started in the early 1960s on a brand new AEW platform for the Royal Navy to replace the Gannet that would encompass both a new type of radar system mounted on a new aircraft, the P.139. While the defence cuts of the mid-1960s led to the cancellation of the P.139, work continued on a British designed radar system. Meanwhile, it was decided that the RAF needed an AEW aircraft to operate as part of the national air defence strategy.
To fulfill the planned requirements for a new AEW aircraft, the government had a number of factors to consider:
Designers at Hawker Siddeley Aviation came up with a proposal that would see the FMICW radar system installed using a Fore Aft Scanner System in the new Nimrod aircraft. This proposal was rejected as being too expensive, with instead a proposal to convert surplus Andover transport aircraft. This was also rejected due to the potential cost of development.
In the interim, to provide a land based AEW aircraft, radar systems from withdrawn Royal Navy Gannets were installed in similarly surplus Avro Shackleton maritime patrol aircraft and entered service from 1972. Around the same time, it was decided not to proceed with FMICW technology as the basis of an AEW system, as research from the United States Air Force (USAF) had shown that pulse-Doppler radar was superior and would be used in the Boeing E-3 Sentry then under development. As a consequence, the idea of a new land-based AEW aircraft for the RAF was re-examined, and again it was decided that the Nimrod met the requirements.
The decision was taken to procure the aircraft fitted with a pulse-Doppler radar system, which then proceeded to a range of options:
The fourth option would maintain both employment and Britain's position at the forefront of radar technology and development; however it was also riskier than purchasing an "off the shelf" product or spreading the risk across multiple partners. In 1977, the US had made an offer to NATO for purchasing several of the new E-3 Sentry aircraft, which were being delivered to the USAF; this was intended to provide airborne early warning cover for Europe's NATO nations without having to rely on the United States, and eventually came into being as the NATO E-3A Component, which was planned to be stationed in the United Kingdom. However, the complex multi-lateral negotiations eventually led the United Kingdom to pursue the all-British development.
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