The AN/TPS-80 Ground/Air Task Oriented Radar (G/ATOR) is the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

next-generation Air Surveillance/

Air Defense Anti-aircraft warfare, counter-air or air defence forces is the battlespace response to aerial warfare, defined by NATO as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It includes surface based, ...

and

Air Traffic Control Air traffic control (ATC) is a service provided by ground-based air traffic controllers who direct aircraft on the ground and through a given section of controlled airspace, and can provide advisory services to aircraft in non-controlled airs ...

(ATC) Radar. The mobile

active electronically scanned array An active electronically scanned array (AESA) is a type of phased array antenna, which is a computer-controlled array antenna in which the beam of radio waves can be electronically steered to point in different directions without moving the an ...

radar system Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance (''ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, weat ...

is currently being developed by

Northrop Grumman Northrop Grumman Corporation is an American multinational aerospace and defense technology company. With 90,000 employees and an annual revenue in excess of $30 billion, it is one of the world's largest weapons manufacturers and military techn ...

and was expected to reach

initial operating capability Initial operating capability or initial operational capability (IOC) is the state achieved when a capability is available in its minimum usefully deployable form. The term is often used in government or military procurement. The United States D ...

in August 2016.

Mission and Description

The Ground/Air Task Oriented Radar (G/ATOR) is a single material solution for the mobile Multi-Role Radar System and Ground Weapons Locating Radar (GWLR) requirements. It is a three-dimensional, short/medium-range multi-role radar designed to detect

unmanned aerial systems An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), commonly known as a drone, is an aircraft without any human pilot, crew, or passengers on board. UAVs are a component of an unmanned aircraft system (UAS), which includes adding a ground-based controlle ...

cruise missiles A cruise missile is a guided missile used against terrestrial or naval targets that remains in the atmosphere and flies the major portion of its flight path at approximately constant speed. Cruise missiles are designed to deliver a large warhead ...

, air-breathing targets,

rockets A rocket (from it, rocchetto, , bobbin/spool) is a vehicle that uses jet propulsion to accelerate without using the surrounding air. A rocket engine produces thrust by reaction to exhaust expelled at high speed. Rocket engines work entirely fr ...

artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during siege ...

, and

mortars Mortar may refer to: * Mortar (weapon), an indirect-fire infantry weapon * Mortar (masonry), a material used to fill the gaps between blocks and bind them together * Mortar and pestle, a tool pair used to crush or grind * Mortar, Bihar, a village i ...

. G/ATOR is designed to satisfy the warfighter's expeditionary needs across the

Marine Air-Ground Task Force Marine Air-Ground Task Force (MAGTF, pronounced MAG-TAF) is a term used by the United States Marine Corps to describe the principal organization for all missions across the range of military operations. MAGTFs are a balanced air-ground, combined ar ...

spectrum, replacing five legacy radar systems with a single solution. The five Marine Corps legacy radar systems being replaced by this multi-function capability include: the AN/TPS-63 (air defense), AN/TPS-73 (air-traffic control), AN/MPQ-62 (short-range air defense), AN/TPQ-46 ( counter-fire target acquisition) and UPS-3 (target tracking). Additionally, it will augment the

AN/TPS-59 The AN/FPS-117 is an L-band active electronically scanned array (AESA) 3-dimensional air search radar first produced by GE Aerospace in 1980 and now part of Lockheed Martin. The system offers instrumented detection at ranges on the order of and h ...

long-range radar. The Program Executive Office (PEO), Land Systems Marine Corps is executing the G/ATOR program as an evolutionary acquisition program consisting of four capabilities, referred to as blocks. * Block 1 completes the primary material system acquisition and can support the short-range air defense and air surveillance mission, as well as provide an Air Defence/Surveillance Radar (AD/SR) capability to the MAGTF Commander. * Block 2 includes software to perform the missions of ground counter-battery/fire control (Ground Locating Weapons Radar). * Block 3 capabilities are not currently defined or resourced, and have been deferred indefinitely. * Block 4 provides air traffic control capabilities (Expeditionary Airport Surveillance Radar). GATOR

G/ATOR provides real-time radar measurement data to the Tactical Air Operations Module, Common Aviation Command and Control System (CAC2S), Composite Tracking Network, and

Advanced Field Artillery Tactical Data System Project Manager Mission Command (or PM MC) is a component of Program Executive Office Command Control Communications Tactical, Program Executive Office Command, Control and Communications-Tactical in the United States Army. PM MC develops, deplo ...

. The G/ATOR baseline system configuration consists of three subsystems: * Communications Equipment Group (CEG). The CEG provides the ability to communicate with and control the radar and is mounted on a

High Mobility Multi-purpose Wheeled Vehicle The High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV; colloquial: Humvee) is a family of light, four-wheel drive, military trucks and utility vehicles produced by AM General. It has largely supplanted the roles previously performed by the ori ...

. * Radar Equipment Group (REG). The REG consists of a phased-array radar mounted on an integrated trailer. The trailer is towed by the

Medium Tactical Vehicle Replacement The Medium Tactical Vehicle Replacement (MTVR) is a series of vehicles used by the U.S. Marines. The first MTVRs were delivered in late 1999. The MTVR is the equivalent of the U.S. Army’s Family of Medium Tactical Vehicles (FMTV); the Marines ...

(MTVR). * Power Equipment Group (PEG). The PEG includes a 60-kilowatt generator and associated power cables mounted on a pallet. The generator pallet is carried by the MTVR.

Development

Development of the G/ATOR began in September 2005 when the Marine Corps awarded a $7.9 million contract to

Northrop Grumman Electronic Systems Northrop Grumman Electronic Systems (NGES) was a business segment of Northrop Grumman from 1996 to 2015 until a reorganization on January 1, 2016 merged other Northrop Grumman businesses into NGES to form a new segment called Mission Systems. NG ...

. Initial design requirements required planning for short-range air surveillance, counter-battery fire and target acquisition, and sensor networking. The requirement also required Block 1 to allow for incremental implementation of the following blocks without equipment or software redesign. In 2009, a $14 million cost overrun for the G/ATOR, was attributed to requirements creep and the increasing cost of scarce materials required in advanced electronic components. In 2012 the Marine Corps and Northrop Grumman began Block 2 development, beginning with upgrading the Block 1 equipment and software for performing GWLR requirements. The G/ATOR program obtained a successful Milestone C decision in March 2014. In October 2014, a 207.3 million dollar

low rate initial production Low rate initial production (LRIP) is a term commonly used in military weapon projects/programs to designate the phase of initial, small-quantity production. The prospective first buyer and operator (i.e., a country's defense authorities and the re ...

(LRIP) contract was awarded to Northrop Grumman for the first lot of four systems. In March 2015, another contract worth $113 million was awarded to produce two additional systems to be delivered in October 2017. In September 2015, the Marine Corps awarded Northrop Grumman a $58.7 million contract to incorporate and test the GWLR mode for the G/ATOR. In September 2016, the Marine Corps awarded Northrop Grumman a $375 million contract for nine additional LRIP systems that will incorporate

gallium nitride Gallium nitride () is a binary III/ V direct bandgap semiconductor commonly used in blue light-emitting diodes since the 1990s. The compound is a very hard material that has a Wurtzite crystal structure. Its wide band gap of 3.4 eV affords it ...

(GaN) technology. On June 10, 2019, the Marine Corps awarded Northrop Grumman a $958 million contract for full-rate production of 30 GaN G/ATOR Systems. A total of 57 G/ATOR systems are planned for procurement. On December 6, 2019, the Marine Corps awarded Northrop Grumman a $188 million contract for the firm-fixed-price portion of a previously awarded contract (M67854-19-C-0043). This modification is for the purchase of six Gallium Nitride full-rate-production systems and associated travel in support of Program Executive Officer Land Systems, Quantico, Virginia. Saab is subcontracted by Northrop Grumman Corporation and has delivered major subsystems and assemblies as well as software since Lot1 and has been part of the development since originally contracted in 2007.

Main characteristics

* Multipurpose Tracking & Surveillance Radar * Proven S-band (2–4 GHz), 3D Radar * Detects fixed- and

rotary-wing aircraft A rotorcraft or rotary-wing aircraft is a heavier-than-air aircraft with rotary wings or rotor blades, which generate lift by rotating around a vertical mast. Several rotor blades mounted on a single mast are referred to as a rotor. The Internat ...

, and

UAVs An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), commonly known as a drone, is an aircraft without any human pilot, crew, or passengers on board. UAVs are a component of an unmanned aircraft system (UAS), which includes adding a ground-based controlle ...

* Performs ATC and fire finder roles * High mobility, transportability, and reliability * The entire system can be airlifted into an operational site by three

CH-53E Super Stallion The Sikorsky CH-53E Super Stallion is a heavy-lift helicopter operated by the United States military. As the Sikorsky S-80, it was developed from the CH-53 Sea Stallion, mainly by adding a third engine, adding a seventh blade to the main rotor, ...

heavy-lift helicopters or

MV-22B The Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey is an American multi-mission, tiltrotor military aircraft with both vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) and short takeoff and landing (STOL) capabilities. It is designed to combine the functionality of a convention ...

Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft, or by a single

C-130 The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is an American four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built by Lockheed (now Lockheed Martin). Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 was originally desig ...

transport. * The system is required to be set up on-site within 45 minutes. * Provides identification of friendly aircraft using a Telephonics UPX-44 IFF (

Identification Friend or Foe Identification, friend or foe (IFF) is an identification system designed for command and control. It uses a transponder that listens for an ''interrogation'' signal and then sends a ''response'' that identifies the broadcaster. IFF systems usual ...

) integrated with the main radar.

Nomenclature

Per the Joint Electronics Type Designation System (JETDS), the nomenclature AN/TPS-80 is thus derived: * "AN/" indicating Army/Navy (Marines) -- a system nomenclature derived from the JETDS * "T" for 'transportable', indicating it is carried by, but not an integral part of, a vehicle (compare with 'V' for vehicle-mounted) * "P" indicating a RADAR * "S" is for Detecting, Range and Bearing, Search * "80" is the 80'th version of this family of TPS radars

References

External links