An RPA-170M radar, produced by the Argentine state-run aerospace, defence, and security company INVAP, is scheduled to be installed in southern Argentina during the first half of May, according to the Argentine Ministry of Defense (MoD). The system will be located in Río Grande city, Tierra del Fuego province, to improve surveillance and control of the South Atlantic's airspace, the MoD said in a 3 March statement.
Argentine Minister of Defense Jorge Taiana said that the Tierra del Fuego location was selected “due to its strategic position in the [Southern] Sea, close to Antarctica and [neighbouring] islands.” The RPA-170M is a tactical, mid-range 3D radar that employs a phased-array antenna and has electronic countermeasures that can detect targets “even in complex electronic warfare scenarios”, according to INVAP.
Two RPA200 primary radars, also manufactured by INVAP, are scheduled to be deployed this year in Tostado city, Santa Fe province, and Mercedes city, close to Buenos Aires, along with the RPA-170M in Tierra del Fuego, the MoD said.
The deployments are part of Argentina's plan to install new radars across the country (Plan de Radarización Nacional) to expand the country's national aerospace surveillance and control system (Sistema Nacional de Vigilancia y Control Aeroespacial: SINVICA).
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