News United States Air Force
 84th RADES tests Air Force’s primary ground deployable radarPublished Oct. 28, 2021
                        
                        By Deb Henley, 505th Command and Control Wing, 84th Radar Evaluation Squadron
                **HILL AIR FORCE BASE, Utah (AFNS) --**
                The Control and Reporting Center team at the**84th Radar Evaluation Squadron**, **Hill Air Force Base**, recently evaluated the Air Force's primary ground deployable radar, the TPS-75, at the **Oregon Air National Guard**'s **116th Air Control Squadron**, Camp Rilea, Oregon.

The CRC team has a unique mission working on the Air Force's primary ground deployable radar for the entire Department of Defense fleet.

The team also directly supports testing and development of the next generation of ground based deployable radars, the Three-Dimensional Expeditionary Long-Range Radar (3DELRR) program.

The three-week TPS-75 baseline evaluation and optimization consisted of strenuous testing, air-traffic analysis using RADES organic software, and optimization of radar parameters.

“The CRC team ensures the legacy CRC radar system is operating at its maximum capabilities while ensuring the future of command and control is realized,” said Tech. Sgt. Jeremy Tharp, 84th RADES radar systems evaluator.

The team's first week out in the field was focused on revealing the current performance of the radar, ensuring all the baseline parameters are optimized for peak TPS-75 performance and performing the site evaluation.

The survey team used their advanced 3D terrestrial laser scanner to capture all of the terrain features and identify obstructions that might interfere with the performance of the radar.

“The TLS sends out hundreds of thousands of laser pulses a second, and as the laser bounces off an obstruction, the beam returns to the machine,” said Staff Sgt. Kerry Moody, 84th RADES radar site evaluator. “Based on the number of data points collected and the reflectance of the object, the scanner can then build a 3D model of the terrain surrounding the radar site.”

To achieve the millimeter accuracy, the survey team requires roughly 60-100 scan positions used in the final survey. “The survey will have over a billion data points, and each point will have very specific information like latitude and longitude, elevation, and temperature,” Moody said.

“The completed survey is used to create radar coverage diagrams which depict that specific radar's ability to track aircraft,” said Jason Kaas, 84th RADES site evaluation section lead. “For instance, if our diagrams predict that a radar should see an aircraft at a specific azimuth, altitude, and distance from the radar, then the technical advisors and radar technicians will use that information during the optimization process to ensure the system is operating at the highest capability.”

Once the baseline was set, the team ensured the antenna itself was as level as possible using a gunner's quadrant, a portable leveling instrument, which enabled them to achieve a precise level of the TPS-75.

“This process resulted in better height distinction and detection, while also ensuring the tilt-sensor circuit was as accurate as possible for targets' heights when it compensates for possible tilt as the antenna spins which are caused by high winds or crosswinds,” Tharp said.

The second week was primarily devoted to in-depth testing utilizing specialized tools within the Radar Analysis Support System for Sites (RASS-S). Most importantly, the team confirmed the sensitivity and bandwidth of the receivers and the strength and roll off of the sensitivity time constants, which ensures the receivers will not be overwhelmed by noise.

According to Tharp, the TPS-75 is a legacy system and the team must always adapt, troubleshoot and help repair the system as needed.

“The work the 84th RADES professionals do on a daily basis enable our homeland defense mission,” said Col. Adam Shelton,**505th Test and Training Group** commander, **Hurlburt Field****,** Florida. “While newer systems are coming, keeping the existing systems operating at peak performance is a daunting task this team does very effectively. Based on organically developed software and decades of experience, the CRC team is truly the linkage between today’s systems and tomorrow’s innovation.”

The team used the recorded data and compared performance between recordings and setting tweaks to ensure the radar had the best possible settings for target detection, height reinforcement and small target detection.

"The CRC team has decades of TPS-75 experience, is highly adaptable and always completes the mission to the highest standard," said Master Sgt. Adam Hodgdon, 84th RADES superintendent, radar evaluation flight.

The 84th RADES at Hill AFB, Utah, reports to the 505th TTG, assigned to the **505th Command and Control Wing**; both headquartered at Hurlburt Field AFB, Fla.FS 



USAF 



AF 



Air Force 



84th Radar Evaluation Squadron 



Hill Air Force Base 



Utah 



ground deployable radar 



Three-Dimensional Expeditionary Long-Range Radar 



Oregon Air National Guard 



Camp Rilea 



radar site evaluation 



Radar Analysis Support System for Sites 



Air Force Materiel Command 



AFMC Related Links
        84th RADES optimizing the nation’s LRR systems for air surveillance and national defense
                                Sept. 22, 2021
                                The 84th Radar Evaluation Squadron, headquartered at Hill Air Force Base, Utah, evaluated the Air Route Surveillance Radar system version four, or ARSR-4, on a mountain top in Paso Robles, California, Aug. 23 - Sept. 4.
            
            Tethered Aerostat Radar System Optimization
                                Nov. 19, 2019
                                The 84th Radar Evaluation Squadron (RADES) recently conducted an analysis and optimization of the Tethered Aerostat Radar System (TARS) in support of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP). The aerostat-borne surveillance system provides radar detection and
            
            84th Radar Evaluation Squadron supports Long Range Radar programs during pandemic
                                Dec. 16, 2020
                                The 84th Radar Evaluations Squadron’s unique mission persists as the United States continues to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.  The 84th RADES at Hill Air Force Base, Utah, evaluates Long Range Radars all over the continental United States, Alaska, Canada, and in several deployed areas of
            
            84th RADES members support search and rescue mission resulting in two lives saved
                                Sept. 17, 2021
                                Arizona emergency responders were able to quickly locate a small plane which crashed in a sparsely populated area near Amado, Arizona, on Aug. 2, thanks in large part to the combined work of Civil Air Patrol’s volunteer National Radar Analysis Team.
            
            84th Radar Evaluation Squadron
                                July 15, 2020
                                The 84th Radar Evaluation Squadron (RADES) at Hill Air Force Base (AFB), Utah, reports to the 505th Test and Training Group headquartered at Hurlburt Field, Florida.  The 84 RADES monitors, evaluates, optimizes, and integrates fixed and mobile long-range radars for both the operational and federal
            
            505th Test and Training Group
                                March 5, 2021
                                The 505th Test and Training Group’s (TTG) mission is to conduct premier testing, evaluation, training, and tactics development across command and control, sensors, and battle management weapons systems.  The group’s vision is to ensure dominance in any domain by providing the best systems, training,