The RNLAF's newly acquired GM400α is operational in Nieuw Milligen, replacing the 52-year-old MPR radar. The system is a gap filler until the new SMART-L MM/F is operational in Herwijnen in 2026. (Thales)
The Nieuw Milligen radar station in the Netherlands has been installed with a new, temporary Ground Master 400 Alpha (GM400α) radar from Thales, the Netherlands Ministry of Defence (MoD) announced on 1 August.
The GM400α is a temporary replacement of the 52-year-old Medium Power Radar (MPR) stationed at Nieuw Milligen until the new radar station in Herwijnen is installed with the long-range SMART-L Multi-Mission/Fixed (MM/F) system from Thales.
Once operational, Herwijnen will monitor the southern regions of the Netherlands, while the radar station in Wier, which is already fitted with the SMART-L MM/F, covers the northern regions.
SMART-L MM/F is a land variant of the naval SMART-L 3D active electronically scanned array (AESA) multibeam air and surface surveillance and target designation radar. Two MM/F systems – integrated with a ballistic missile defence (BMD) capability and a space object surveillance mode – were procured by the MoD to improve the Royal Netherlands Air Force's (RNLAF's) ability to detect new threats such as low-flying unmanned systems and ballistic missiles.
GM400α is an S-band radar featuring five times more processing power than previous versions with an extended 515 km range, enabled by an upgraded radar processor and ‘advanced' detection algorithms. The system is designed to be mobile, with a deployment time of 30 minutes, supported via a foldable antenna, the company said.
By integrating Doppler waveforms, the radar has the ability to detect objects of interest at a very low altitude, such as tactical unmanned aircraft systems (UASs), Yves Descourvieres, the head of product management at Thales, told Janes
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