The MoD has bought 40 multi-band radios from Rohde & Schwarz to equip the Sea King HAR 3 fleet and the training flight simulator.
Based on software defined radio technology, the M3AR’s are multi-band transceivers covering the 30 to 400MHz range and can be set up for either 8.33kHz or 25kHz channel spacing.
The new radios will replace the obsolete ARC-115 VHF and ARC-116 UHF air traffic control radios, which have been installed since the aircraft was built.
“The project team’s holistic approach to the HAR 3’s obsolescence problems has also resulted in a modification that introduces a fully integrated and state of the art communications and homing system that will take the aircraft through to the end of its service life,” said Tony Arnold, the Sea King project team project officer.
“This will save the MoD around £2m before the 2017 aircraft out of service date,” said Arnold.
“The radios’ drop-in compatibility with the ARC-115/116s made them straightforward and cost-effective to integrate,” said Keith Randall, Rohde & Schwarz UK’s sales manager for radio communications.