Saab signed a contract with the Swedish Defence Materiel Administration and received an order for an integrated sensor and command and control system for use with ground based air defence. The order value is approximately 2.1 billion SEK ($250 million) and the contract period is 2020-2025. The order includes a number of Saab’s multifunctional radar Giraffe 4A and upgrades of the Swedish Armed Forces’ existing Giraffe AMB surface radars. Saab will also update existing and deliver additional command and control systems, as well as provide extensive integration of the air defence battalions’ fire units. Saab will carry out the work in Gothenburg, Järfälla, Arboga and Halmstad in Sweden.
Together with the Swedish Defence Materiel Administration and the Swedish Armed Forces, we have created a comprehensive world-class solution that integrates the sensors, command and control systems and fire units in the ground based air defence system. This is an important order for Saab and we are proud to deliver a central part of Sweden’s defence capability”, says Anders Carp, deputy CEO of Saab and head of business area Surveillance.
The new mobile radar stations, with different mast lengths, are an important part of the contract that FMV has signed with Saab. The radar stations will support target data for both Air Defense System 103 (Patriot) and Fire Unit 98 (VL IRIS-T). The combination of advanced radar and powerful fire units creates the ability to detect and combat low-flying threats such as cruise missiles. The command system ensures integration between Luftvärnssystem 103 and other parts of the air defense as part of the entire Swedish Air Force. This is done through integration of data links such as Link16 and JREAP-C for air position information, and also via voice and text connections for, among other things, orders and reports.
The Saab (formerly Ericsson Microwave Systems AB) Giraffe Radar is a family of land and naval two- or three-dimensional G/H-band (4 to 8 GHz) passive electronically scanned array radar-based surveillance and air defense command and control systems tailored for operations with medium- and Short Range Air Defense (SHORAD) missile or gun systems or for use as gap-fillers in a larger air defense system. The radar gets its name from the distinctive folding mast which when deployed allows the radar to see over nearby terrain features such as trees, extending its effective range against low-level air targets. The first systems were produced in 1977. By 2007, some 450 units of all types are reported as having been delivered.
