In this exclusive interview conducted ahead of this year’s Military Radar Conference, Maxime Bagnoud, Senior Programme Manager, Armasuisse, shares his insight on the potential applications of 3D Phased Array Radar for the military, and the challenges that this poses. 

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Download the interview to read Maxime’s answers to the following questions:

• How would you see 3D Phased Array Radar fit into military applications? 
• What are the main advantages of this type of radar for military purposes? What elements need to be taken into consideration in order for militaries to use 3D Phased Array Radar for their operations?
• Are there any lessons learned from successful practical applications of 3D Phased Array Radar for military purposes?
• Could you please explain the main advantages and disadvantages of these radars for the military: Diagonal planar array, Trapezoidal array, Curved surface array

Here is a preview of the interview:

Defence IQ: What are the main advantages of this type of radar for military purposes? What elements need to be taken into consideration in order for militaries to use 3D Phased Array Radar for their operations?

Maxime Bagnoud: The main benefit of electronic scanning is the flexibility it gives us for beam scheduling, steering and forming. Of course, some basic radar design parameters (like antenna size, carrier frequency, peak power, etc.) lead to physical limits, which determine the range of possible applications of a certain design. However, the flexibility given by a software-designed beam forming and transmission allows leveraging the potential of a particular hardware design to the greatest extent. To give a few examples beyond the traditional search vs. track missions, one can use a CRAM detection radar as a short- to mid-range air surveillance system. A CRAM detection radar is originally optimised for a large number of small RCS targets, so that it can be very efficient against a drone swarm, but it could also be re-designed against other target types by...