APQ-50/72/100/109/120 detection range?

[lancer21]

Hello everyone , new user , happy to be here! Great site , been following it for quite a while, and decided to join, so much interesting info and discussions here!

Now, as my topic title suggests , i'd like to ask if someone has some datas on these radars, at least some summary data on their detection range against fighter and bomber RCS targets ? Surprisingly, even if the F-4 is an old bird, cant find much reliable info on its various radars, tried few places , but no luck so far.

Also , if i understand correctly , none of the above radars have LD/SD capability , except the AWG-10/11/12 sets, right ?( and if anyone have dats on their characteristics too , i'd be grateful)

Thank you for your help!

[lancer21]

Well after alot of browsing , i did found a good old harpoon PDF document containing various radar data ...its not 100% accurate , but thats all i got , i read there that the APQ-120 is credited with a max detection range of 50nm, and the APQ-100/109 with 40nm...i'll just post what i got, harpoon gives the range for various size target ( large, medium , small , v. small in that order )

 APQ-120 AI 50/35/26/11/3
 APQ-100 AI 40/25/19/8/2
 APQ-109 same

...is anyone able to confirm these datas please? Thank you.

BTW extermely surprising that harpoon credits Cyrano-IVM with JUST 30nm !!! but thats another issue...

[Pit]

Document for game playing, not real time performance 

[lancer21]

I know but thats all i could find on the bloody things! 

( save for something from our good russian friends comunity ...but even there the information is contradictory ...so its still open )

[PG_69]

APQ-72 given as 56 km vs MiG-17 and 25-30 miles vs BQM-34 drone.

[lancer21]

Interesting info , thanks.
Would you have a source for this info please?


I have been looking around on various russian boards for info on these radars , i found some unconfirmed fugures for the APQ-120 , for instance detection range for a 1m2 RCS target being 56km!( 30 nm-incidentaly this info is published in VERY old Flight Global magazines , at the end of seventies...). Other infos state the detection range for  a FIGHTER size target is 70km , while still other info states that this 70km figure refers to  a BOMBER size target detection range ...

Gee what is so secret about this radar that one cant find any reliable info around ...

[overscan]

1) targets vary in RCS at different angles

2) detection range varies in different conditions

3) detection of targets is not 100% reliable.

4) performance of analogue radars depends on how well they are tuned and maintained.

Its not like the target is at 90.1km away and you definitely can't detect it, but then next sweep its at 89.9km and you can detect it with 100% certainty. Radar X might have 10% chance of detection for a given size target at 90km, 50% chance of detection at 70km, 90% chance of detection at 50km. If you wanted, you could claim it has a range of anywhere between 50km and 90km - do you go with the maximum possible range, the average range, or the range where you can be almost certain to detect the target?

Westinghouse brochures for the APG-66 quoted range for a 90% chance of detection, but when the figures were repeated elsewhere, most writers used only the range value. If a rival  company wanted their radar to appear superior, they could quote the range for 50% chance of detection, or quote the maximum range ever seen during testing, and seem to have a longer range radar, but it might not be really any better.

So finding a single agreed range figure is a fruitless task....

[lancer21]

Thanks for your reply Overscan , yes you do have a point offcourse. As i mentioned before in another topic i dont know much about the  technical stuff ( klystron tubes ,waveguides and the likes) , but i'm just an enthusiast( fanboy? ) who likes to learn and know things about ones hobby...

Lets just say i'm just looking for the sort of info on detection ranges for APQ-120 and other Phantom radars, like you have ( had ?) on your russian avionics site for various russian radars, from a decently reliable source ...

Thanks again.

 

[crossiathh]

APQ-50/72/100/109/120

Do they still using conical scan or are these monopuls radars?

[overscan]

You've read this topic on AWG-10, right?

http://www.secretprojects.co.uk/forum/index.php/topic,149.0.html