US soldiers

Saab has been selected for supply of a wide area multilateration (WAM) system to the US Army for installation at the Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM), Fort Lewis in Washington, US.

The WAM system is expected to provide accurate surveillance during low level aviation tactical manoeuvres during training exercises at JBLM.

Saab Defense and Security US president and chief executive officer, Lars Borgwing, said Saab WAM is a field-proven surveillance solution for accurate situational awareness of a diverse mixture of aircraft and helicopters operating in challenging airspace.

"The system at JBLM will provide the military with a reliable method of acquiring airspace situational awareness that will benefit training safety and force readiness," Borgwing said.

JBLM becomes the fourth US military installation after the US Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center

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"The system at JBLM will provide the military with a reliable method of acquiring airspace situational awareness."

Saab WAM is a cooperative surveillance and data link system and uses multiple low-maintenance, non-rotating sensors to triangulate aircraft location based on transponder signals, providing operators with accurate aircraft position and identification information, irrespective of weather conditions.

The system delivers effective surveillance for increased safety, capacity and efficiency of airspace and surface operations with a higher update rate and greater positional accuracy than a conventional radar.

In addition, each multilateration sensor meets future European mandates by supporting automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B), which is a cooperative surveillance technology for tracking aircraft.

The system has to date been selected to improve safety, efficiency, capacity and cost savings at around 100 sites worldwide through airport surface surveillance, wide area surveillance and airport surface management.


Image: US Soldiers at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington, US. Photo: courtesy of Sgt. Sarah Enos.

Defence Technology